


And I Will Make Thee Beds of Roses

by Dreamstodream



Category: Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Robin (Comics)
Genre: Alpha Tim Drake, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Arranged Marriage, Breastfeeding, Brief mention of a past miscarriage, Comfort, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, JayTim Week, M/M, Male Lactation, Mpreg, My first fanfic so probably ooc sorry, Omega Jason Todd, Others cameo, They were never brothers au, not kinky tho, omegas are low-key second class citizens sorry, selfless love is my kink, very little hurt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-18
Updated: 2019-06-06
Packaged: 2019-08-25 15:25:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 21,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16663390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamstodream/pseuds/Dreamstodream
Summary: Tim’s reached the age at which every alpha must get married. Jason, pregnant and fresh from an abusive alpha, was never supposed to be an option.





	1. Chapter One

“Can I help you?” The receptionist, who has to be younger than him by a few years, is smiling too wide. Tim wants to turn and run.

Instead Tim pastes an echoing smile across his face as he approaches. “Hi, yes. Appointment for Drake-Wayne. I’m supposed to go through my matches with Dr. Kriss today.”

“Mr Drake, we were so excited to finally get your application.” The omega somehow beams wider. He’s on his feet in seconds, despite the gentle swell of his belly, and starts towards a long hallway. “If you’ll follow me, please. How has your day been?”

“It’s been good.” Tim clings tightly to his genteel businessman persona. The hand he’s hidden in his pocket is clenched so hard it shakes. He reminds himself it’s not the man’s fault Tim presented as an alpha and not a beta like Bruce or Dick. “How are you?”

“I’m good.” Surely smiling that much has to hurt. The man hallway opens up into a room of filing cabinets and he starts shuffling through the one marked ‘D’. “Excited to find your match? I was so nervous when I had to register, but of course then I met my husband and he’s been perfect. You have nothing to worry about.”

And that shakes Tim out of his self pity for a moment. Sure he might not want a mate, but at least he’s going to get to pick who it will be. Omegas don’t get to choose.

The man’s earnest concern, and the fact that they’ll probably never meet again has him admitting, “I’m... not sure what to feel... Turning twenty-one always felt so far away.”

“It will be fine.” The omega wraps an arm around Tim, almost shyly resting his cheek on Tim’s shoulder in omegan comfort behavior. “And you’re just looking at matches today, you don’t have to make a decision for a few weeks.”

“Thanks.” Tim swallows down the lump in his throat, making a note to send a special thank you to the man.

The man, his name tag says Bart, beams wide again and pulls away with a thumbs up. “Now lets get you to Dr. Kriss.”

They turn down another hallway and Tim is ushered into a nice sized room. A desk with a computer takes up a large portion of the room, but there’s also a comfortable couch and a table. Bart drops the large file onto the doctor’s desk, grinning at her. “Here’s your ten o’clock.” He waves at Tim, wiggling his fingers, on the way out. “Have fun.”

“Tim.” Dr. Kriss smiles warmly and picks up the file. “Have a seat.”

They arrange themselves on the couch and the doctor starts laying out photos of various omegas. They’re all beautiful, in a china doll sort of way. Tim’s heart sinks just a little bit.  He knows that you shouldn’t judge based on appearance, but... he knows most of these omegas. They’re all high society darlings with all the depth of a kiddie pool.

After Tim declines a drink, they get to it. Pedigree after pedigree, Dr. Kriss outlines the genetic benefits and disadvantages to each omega. Then she presents him with a scent rag from each. One at a time, with a growing dread, he sniffs each. Each time he shakes his head. None of them smell particularly unpleasant... they’re just nice.

Then they come to the last one and it smells so strongly of cherry pie that he has to take a deeper sniff, just to check. Dr. Kriss smiles knowingly and goes to take the rag back. For a second he doesn’t want to let it go, but then he feels sick and releases it immediately.

She doesn’t seem to notice as she rifles through the files to find the one with the same ID number. “I knew we’d find a match for you, Mr. Drake-Wayne. Our satisfaction rate is the highest in the state. In fact—” she breaks off, going pale. “Are you sure one of the other scents didn’t appeal to you? We do have a few others we can try.”

“Why?” He leans forward, holding his hand out for the file. He’s not particularly set on that scent, he’d just as soon find no one, but her reaction has the detective in him rising up.

She reluctantly hands the file over. “Jason’s a... special case. Not likely to meet the needs of  someone with your.... stature.”

A quick skim reveals exactly what she means. Jason had likely been sold off the second he presented; wasn’t even registered with the Population Center until after the alpha he’d been staying with had been arrested for drug possession and sent to prison for sadistic serial killings. The omega was evidently highly aggressive, sorely lacking the submissive manner most people expected from an omega, and— he was pregnant.

Tim bounces his leg as he scans through Jason’s dna testing. The results are highly compatible with his own. Lastly he takes a glance at the photo included. Despite the facial bruising and slight sneer, the omega is handsome. A white streak hangs low in his teal eyes, contrasting with the rest of his black curls. A smattering of freckles dusts the entirety of his face, darkest across his cheeks like a permanent blush. He looks about as happy to be registered as Tim feels.

Tim gives the file another once over and then takes Jason’s photo to tuck into his wallet. “I want to meet him.”

*****

As it turns out he doesn’t  have to wait long to meet the omega, two days was all it took to arrange. Since Jason doesn’t have a guardian, the poor man has been staying in the center. In the three weeks he’s been there he hasn’t had a single visitor.

Upon hearing that Tim immediately made plans to take him out to dinner if the meeting goes well.

Bart chatters away at him as they walk. Tim smiles and responds as needed, but it’s hard to follow the cheerful omega’s conversation when he’s busy worrying. It’s customary for a courting alpha to offer gifts as proof he can provide for the omega. Though he’s still not sure he wants a mate or children, Tim finds himself desperately hoping Jason likes what he’s chosen. They might not get to choose who their alpha will be, but if an omega rejects their suitor it’s not likely for the match to be made.

While trying to persuade Tim towards an omega with a better pedigree, Dr. Kriss let it slip that Jason has already turned away three suitors. The challenge of it merely makes it all feel a little more right. He doesn’t want an omega who will just roll over.

Dick had suggested a diamond ring or necklace, and Bruce suggested a townhome.  Tim had balked, not at the price, but at the commitment both gifts implied. They haven’t met, he doesn’t want to scare the poor creature off. So instead Tim chose a box of chocolates, a copy of his favorite mystery novel, and a gender neutral baby blanket.

It’s that last one that has him the most worried.

Chocolates are standard fare, and the novel isn’t exactly unusual, but most omegas being courted aren’t pregnant. Kon, one of his few real friends, campaigned hard against the blanket when they were picking things out. He’d thought Jason likely wouldn’t like the reminder he was pregnant.

Tim had bought it anyway, stubbornly insisting that he wanted to show he was willing to take care of the baby too. But as he’s approaching the area where his potential mate is staying, doubts are starting to creep in. He doesn’t know for sure that Jason wants to keep the child. With the country’s devastating low birth rates, abortion is illegal. It could be a case where he’s being forced to keep the pregnancy against his will...

“Well, here we are.” Bart pats Tim on the back, jostling him out of his dark thoughts. “You should be able to go right in, but word of advice? I’d knock first. He’s been getting a little territorial as he’s settled in.”

“Thanks.” Tim flashes a brief smile and then turns to face the door.  Now he wishes he’d insisted harder on them meeting somewhere more neutral. Swallowing down his nervousness, he’s Red Robin for Pete’s sake, he knocks firmly three times and waits. And waits. And waits. 

Several minutes later, just as he’s about to knock again or find Bart to see if this is maybe the wrong door, it opens and he’s hit with a waft of warm cherries and cinnamon.

Jason is beautiful, not despite his massive size but because of it. His curls look barely tamed, and the tank top/cargo pants combo he’s wearing does nothing to hide just how muscular he is. Those thighs in particular are gorgeous...

Tim’s mouth’s gone dry and he shoves the gift bag towards the omega clumsily.  He’s forgotten the proper wording he’s supposed to use, so he stammers out, “Hi Jason. I’m Tim. I... brought you these.”

Jason doesn’t move to invite him in, so he doesn’t push to enter the room. He stands in the hallway as Jason pulls the chocolates out of the bag with a quiet snort and tosses them onto a nearby counter. The novel gets more careful consideration before being set on the counter as well.

Then Jason pulls out the yellow fleece blanket, the softest one Tim could find, and freezes. When he speaks, his voice is deep but so gentle. “Why?”

“I don’t know if you want to keep him or her, but I—” Tim answers quietly, instinctively using a soothing alpha tone in response to the fear in Jason’s scent.

“I’m not giving them up.” Jason’s arm wraps protectively around his still flat stomach.

“I would never ask you to.” Tim takes a step back, not wanting to crowd. “I know that I’m courting both of you.”

For a moment, he thinks Jason is going to shut the door on his face. In fact, the door starts to close. Then Jason, chewing on a plush bottom lip, steps aside to let Tim in. “I... I accept these gifts. Thank you, alpha.”

Tim grins, relieved despite how badly he didn’t want to be matched. He leans in close to Jason, taking the omega’s free hand. For a moment he studies Jason’s uncertain expression, cataloging every freckle, then he bends down to place a kiss to the back of the calloused hand. “No, Jason. Thank you.”

*****

Two dates later, against the advice of every professional and most of his ‘friends’, comes Tim’s wedding. Maybe he is rushing in headfirst, but it’s not like he had a lot of time to spare anyway. The law requires that every alpha be married to an omega by his twenty-second birthday. Tim has six months and he’s not inclined to take advantage of them, not with Jason’s pregnancy.

Tim wants to be able to claim the pup as his with as little trouble as possible. The more time he spends as Jason’s mate during the pregnancy, the easier that will be. He hasn’t told anyone besides family and a couple close friends that Jason’s expecting with the hope of avoiding any trouble at all.

Jason, for his part, seems apathetic about the mating. Tim doesn’t let himself be hurt by the omega’s indifference. They’d been honest with each other about their reasons for the union. Tim has to have a mate and he thinks they can be friends. Jason needs the stability of a match to be allowed to keep his baby. If he’s not mated before the pup’s birth, the agency will put it up for adoption.

Tim proposed immediately after learning that little tidbit.

It had seemed the right thing to do at the time, but now... standing at the alter dressed in a stifling tuxedo, he feels like he’s going to throw up. He tries to wipe his palms off on the suit pants without drawing attention to the fact that it’s the fifth time he’s done so in as many minutes.

“He must be something to have you so nervous, Baby Bird.” Dick teases.  He’s Tim’s best man. He’s also the only one who seems to lack any reservations about this marriage.

“I’m excited to finally meet him.” Kon laughs, shuffling just slightly out of place to tease Tim again. He and Cassie are Tim’s groomsmen, though they both insist he doesn’t know Jason well enough for marriage. “Never seen our Timmy so worked up.”

“Shut up.” He snaps quietly.

“How much longer must we stand here?” Damian mutters to Dick. He neither wanted to be a junior groomsman, nor did Tim want him in that role, but Alfred had declared it to be so and they were stuck with it.

“Not much longer, little D. And then we get wedding cake.” Dick reassures the boy, as though wedding cake will be reward enough for a baby alpha of nearly thirteen years.

Tim gives Damian a small smirk. “Think of it as practice for your own wedding. Eight more years and this will be you.”

It’s only because Dick had taken away Damian’s weapons earlier that Tim doesn’t get decapitated on the spot. Before Dick can do more than step between the two, music begins to play.

Tim’s mouth goes dry and he turns with the others to watch the bridal party make its way down the aisle.

A fierce alpha female in a red dress walks arm in arm down the aisle with a massive beta in a tux with red accents, Artemis and Bizarro. It turns out they were Jason’s neighbors back at the apartment he’d shared with his previous alpha. Why Artemis didn’t go to the center and simply claim Jason as her own, Tim doesn’t know. He does know that she and Jason basically share custody of the beta. Biz, as Jason insists he be called has severely impaired cognition. Jason found Biz on the street and employed the alpha’s help to care for him. 

When Tim asked why they don’t used his birth name, Jason shrugged and said no one knew it. The beta answers to Biz or Bizzaro and nothing else.

They take their places, Artemis shooting Tim a warning glare. The shovel talk she’d given Tim, twice, had been terrifying enough to curdle milk.

Flower girls and the ring bearer, extraordinarily distant cousins to the Drake and families, make their way down the aisle.

Then everyone rises to watch Jason make his way down the aisle. His white lace and silk dress shirt is well fitted, with a high collar that nearly reaches his chin,  but loose enough to conceal the slight bump he’s beginning to grow. A frothy lace veil, pinned to his wild curls with flower blossoms, obscure his face so Tim can’t see his expression. He hears whispers, members of high society they couldn’t afford to snub, snark about Jason’s size. Someone says something about a sow’s ear, and Tim makes a silent promise to destroy them because Jason looks beautiful.

Bruce is escorting him, something Jason had asked for when their planner lamented the lack of Jason’s guardian. When asked why, the omega shrugged. “He’s gotta be in the wedding somehow an’ he’ll be my father in law soon enough.”

Between blinks Jason makes it from the end of the aisle to his side. They join hands when instructed, Jason’s trembling ever so slightly. Tim gives them a gentle squeeze and a smile. While the pastor rambles on about the history of matings and the noble duties each caste plays in society, Tim leans close to whisper in his omega’s ear. “Just a little longer and we can escape.”

“To the reception.” Jason mutters back, shifting his weight and making an aborted movement to rub his stomach. “Something tells me that will be worse.”

Tim holds to his hands a little tighter, not wanting Jason to give away the fact he’s pregnant. He’s not ashamed of Jason, if he cared that Jason was expecting he wouldn’t have chosen him in the first place, but he doesn’t want his omega facing more judgement than he’s already under for being previously mated and from the poorer area of Gotham. “Maybe. It won’t be for long. We’ll make our appearances and then we can escape to my brownstone.”

He can’t tell for sure because of the veil, but he thinks Jason gives him a disbelieving side eye.

The pastor clears his throat and Tim flinches. The audience laughs. Tim still can’t see his omega’s face and... and that’s bothering him almost more than the perfume covering up Jason’s scent.

The pastor prompts him to repeat his vows,  but it takes him two tries to get the words out. Jason’s shoulders shake slightly with suppressed laughter as Tim chokes out, “I, Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne, take you, Jason Peter Todd, to be my friend, the mother of my children, and my omega. I vow to have and to hold you, to honor you, to treasure you, and to protect you for all eternity.”

He slips the ring onto Jason’s finger and swallows down his excess saliva as the pastor turns to prompt Jason.

The omega hesitates and for one sickening moment he thinks Jason will turn and run. But then the omega shudders and begins, “I, Jason Peter Todd, choose you, Timothy Jackson Drake-Wayne to be my alpha. I vow to respect you in your successes and in your failures, to care for you in sickness and in health, to nurture your pups, and to remain at your side throughout the rest of our lives."

Tim barely feels the cold metal slide onto his ring finger.

The pastor snaps his Bible shut and takes a step back, “I pronounce you husband and wife. You may claim your bride.”

Tim takes a step forward and Jason bends so he can lift the veil. The omega is watching him warily. Light eyeliner accentuates his worried blue-green eyes. Tim gives him a reassuring smile before cupping the back of his neck. Jason’s lips on his is as satisfying as he imagined it to be. He stakes his claim with a thorough kiss before pulling back slightly, enjoying the way Jason’s protesting whine shudders through his bones. He mouths his way down Jason’s jaw to his neck, trying to calm the omega. Jason having nervously confessed at the rehearsal dinner that his previous alpha had never truly claimed him and so he’d never had a claiming bite before.

Tim’s selfishly glad, as he pulls away Jason’s collar and noses at his neck, that he’s the first. He gingerly lines his teeth up along the smooth unmarked skin and bites, bracing himself to take Jason’s weight when the omega collapses against him. At the taste of blood, he unlocks his jaw and laps at the bite apologetically before finally pulling back so he can tuck Jason against his side. He’s panting slightly and trying desperately to suppress the physical effects of claiming as Jason clings to him.

“Now ladies and gentlemen, it is with the greatest pleasure that I now present to you Mr. and Mrs. Drake-Wayne.”

Tim can’t help but preen a little at the applause, proud to show the omega on his arm off as they make their way down the aisle. He steals another kiss, giving ample opportunity for Jason to withdraw consent before he does so, while they wait at the door for the receiving line. They’ll accept well wishes as everyone leaves for the reception at the Wayne Tower ballroom.

“What’s that for?” Jason asks, raising an eyebrow when Tim pulls back. Tim notes with satisfaction that Jason’s lipstick is slightly smudged and the omega is breathless. “Ain’t no one here to see.”

“Maybe, Mrs. Drake-Wayne, I just wanted a kiss.” He teases gently, still riding the emotional high.

Jason frowns slightly, but leans into Tim’s embrace as the wedding party begins to gather around them. The omega brightens as Biz runs towards them, sweeping the massive omega up in his arms like it’s nothing.  “Red him am very pretty.”

Tim laughs and picks up Jason’s veil from where it’s dropped to the ground. Dick slings an arm around his shoulders, plucking the veil from Tim’s hands and then plopping it onto his head. The older beta smirks as he whispers into Tim’s ears. “I can definitely see what all the fuss was about. Good choice, little brother.”

Tim elbows him, but Dick takes it in stride. He laughs and goes to introduce himself to Jason. The omega seems a little flustered at meeting his brother-in-law while cradled in Biz’s arms, but Tim catches a hint of a smile when Dick then introduces himself to Biz with equal formality.

“Good to meet blue-him too.” Biz sets Jason down gingerly and then sweeps Dick up in a hug.

“Blue him?” Tim asks mildly, reaching up to secure a few of the flowers drooping from Jason’s curls.

Jason shrugs and slings one arm around Tim’s shoulder’s, taking great pleasure in adjusting the veil so it sits a little straighter on Tim’s head. “Your brother wears blue in most of the pictures paparazzi manage to grab.”

“Didn’t know you read Biz the gossip magazines.”

“I don’t, Arty does.” Jason’s grin is wicked as he watches Artemis approach them at a more sedate pace than her companion, his voice projecting so there’s no chance she can’t hear him. Tim quietly resigns himself to defending Jason from the alpha.

Perhaps their frequent squabbles are the reason she didn’t claim Jason.

*****

They reach the brownstone four hours later, having stayed the bare minimum required of them. Jason was right when he said it would be worse than the ceremony, at least then the criticism of their guests had been reduced to whispers. As the reception drug on, and people got drunker, their thoughts on Tim’s choice of omega got louder.

Tim had kind of enjoyed getting to hand feed Jason at the dinner though. Sure it was supposed to symbolize how he would now be responsible for all of Jason’s needs or some such bull, but there was something... sweet about the shy way Jason would duck his head before every bite. Caring for the omega on that level was almost an euphoric experience. It’s clear Jason is worn out though, he nearly falls asleep on the drive back to Tim’s home.

Or, Tim reconsiders as Jason doesn’t stir from his position curled up in the passenger seat, he did in fact fall asleep. Regretfully, Tim touches Jason’s shoulder.

The omega springs to life, nearly braining himself in his haste to press his back against the doorframe. His teeth bare in a snarl that’s worryingly threatening, despite his comparatively flat omega teeth, as one arm curls around his stomach. Then he seems to register Tim’s presence and slumps back down into the seat, all aggression faded away. “Sorry.”

“We’re here.” Tim shrugs casually and gestures towards the house. He wants Jason’s attention off of him so that he won’t notice just how angry Tim is at the people who’ve trained that reaction into him. He also doesn’t want Jason thinking that he needs to apologize. “It’s only in use about half the time, but it’s home. I inherited it from my birth dad when he died.”

“It’s nice.” Jason comments, chewing on his bottom lip. It’s distracting and Tim has to force himself up out of the car so he won’t do something foolish like kiss his new bride.

He rushes to get to the other side before Jason can climb out so that he can offer a hand to help him and then keeps one hand on the small of Jason’s back as he guides him up the stairs. It feels a little ridiculous to be guiding such a massive man, especially when compared to his own fairly short stature, but it also feels right. They pause so Tim can unlock the door and then, once he’s got it open, Tim sweeps Jason up into a bridal hold so he can carry him over the threshold.

Jason yelps and clings to his shoulders, still holding onto Tim after being set down. “What’s that for?”

“Tradition. Can’t risk any bad luck.” Tim smirks and brushes his lips across Jason’s cheek. Then he pulls back, not wanting to make Jason defensive. “If you want to look around some, I’ll go get your things.”

Jason gives a small hum, running his fingers through his hair to dislodge the remaining few flowers from the curls.

Having a mate isn’t nearly the drama he’d thought it’d be. Tim can’t help the warmth bubbling up in his chest as he rushes to get his omega’s things. Jason doesn’t have much, just two suitcases, and about a third of it came from Tim himself. When he gets back up into the house, he finds Jason exploring the kitchen.  To his delight, Jason seems well pleased with the renovations he’d had made when he officially inherited the brownstone at eighteen.

He sets Jason’s things down briefly, with enough of a thump to announce his presence. “I had this redone a few years back, but if there’s anything missing let me know and I’ll be more than happy to have it delivered.”

“It’s... it’s nice.” Jason nods and ducks his head. “I think you have more than anyone could hope to use.”

“It’s certainly more than I’ve ever used.” Tim chuckles and heft’s the suitcases again. “Want to see where you’ll be sleeping?”

There’s a brief flicker of fear across Jason’s expression that breaks Tim’s heart, before determination takes its place. Jason nods and firmly takes one of the suitcases from him. Tim allows it without argument.

He tries to make small talk, describing the house’s history as they walk. It’s a three bedroom home, with Tim’s bedroom at the top of the stairs. The bedroom next door is the one they’re interested in though. He pushes open the door and sets Jason’s suitcase next to an antique vanity. “I thought you might like having your own room. The house was built back when married couples still had separate rooms, so mine’s connected by that side door there, but you can lock it from the inside if you want to keep me out.”

Jason glances towards the door and then hesitantly approaches the bed. Because it’s such an old building, the bed is actually built into the wall in a cave like structure. Its impractical use of space is the reason the fad died out, but Tim had decided to let it be instead of knocking the wall down and expanding the room. Seeing the naked longing, the pure excitement, radiate from his omega makes him glad he’d kept it as is.

“There’s a pup bed in the back too, if you’d rather keep the pup in here with you than in a nursery.” Tim informs, feeling the natural urge to impress his mate, especially since they’re basically still in the courting stage.

A pup bed is a second hollow in a side wall with the bottom rounded out into a deep nest shape padded for the baby’s comfort. That’s an addition that he’d recently had made after doing some research on omega comfort during and after pregnancy.

Jason bites his lip and peeks into the bed. “That’s... thank you.”

“You’re welcome. If you need anything, please let me know.” Tim shoves his hands into his pockets. “Your room is yours. You can have it arranged however you’d like, and you have every right to keep me out of it. I’ll assume that unless I’m specifically invited, I’m unwelcome. That being said, however, my door is always open. The doctors recommend that you spend at least two nights in my bed a week, especially because of the pregnancy’s start, but it doesn’t need to be anything more than cuddling.”

Jason’s response is an awkward and terrified nod, so Tim gives a small smile and takes a few steps to the door. The omega needs space, and honestly so does he. He’s just invited two people into his life; has agreed to become responsible for a new life. Most people get a year or so before they have to come to terms with children. “Pizza sound good? You go ahead and rest, unpack, whatever you need to do. I’ll come get you when it gets here.”

He waits for acknowledgement and then leaves the room to set up their night in.

*****

The rest of the night passes quickly. Tim pauses the movie when Jason’s head finally drops that last little bit to his shoulder. He can’t quite hold back his amusement, rumbling happily before he can catch himself. It’s something he hasn’t done since he was a pup curled up against his nanny.

The noise is startling for both of them. Jason jerks backwards and Tim blinks down owlishly at the omega.

“Sorry.” He mumbles once the silence has grown beyond awkward. “Are you okay?”

Jason hesitates, and then nods. His arm wraps tightly around his stomach, watching Tim like he still expects to be attacked. “Do you want me in your bed tonight?”

“I—” his mouth is too dry. In all honesty, he hasn’t let himself think of his wedding night. “It would probably be best for the baby if we started bonding right away, to reassure your body that you have the support of an alpha, but if the idea makes you uncomfortable we don’t have to.”

“What...” Jason swallows, the bob of his throat would be tempting if he didn’t seem nearly terrified. “What would you expect if I did sleep with you?”

“For you to sleep, Jason.” Tim takes the omega’s hand and runs a thumb over his knuckles. “There’s no law anywhere that’s going to force us to have sex tonight, or any night.”

“You’re within your rights to insist.” Jason mumbles, not looking him in the eye.

“Jason, I would never touch you in a way I knew made you uncomfortable.” He wants to cup Jason’s face in his hands, make the omega look him in the eye so he knows just how serious Tim is. That would do more harm than good though, so instead he gives the hand he’s captured a gentle squeeze. He forces himself to be blunt, knowing Jason will take evasion to be proof of ill intent, rather than an indication that Tim is uncomfortable. He hates that he has to promise, wants to hunt down the alphas who hurt such a precious creature. “I promise, sweetheart. I’m never going to force you. Ifwe have sex, I want it to be love and not rape.”

Jason flinches backwards, full body. “O-okay. I can, that is... the baby. I should probably stay with you tonight.”

Tim smiles reassuringly, leans forward just a little. “Once we’re in bed, is it okay if I scent you?”

“You... want permission to...” Jason sucks in a short breath, and then nods. “Yeah. That’s okay.”

Tim presses a kiss to the hand he’s captured and then releases it, scooting back to give Jason space. “Are you ready for bed?”

Jason whines quietly and shifts on the couch. But then he ducks his head in a nod. “Yeah.”

“You can go get ready then. I can clean up here.”

Jason hesitates. “I could—“

“I’m sure you can, sweetheart, but you’re the one pregnant.” Tim stands and holds out a hand to help Jason up. “Today was a long day, and we need to keep you as relaxed and happy as possible so you can grow our little peanut strong and healthy.”

“Peanut?” Jason asks, letting Tim pull him to his feet. In fact, the omega even leans on Tim a moment, clearly exhausted.

Tim holds impossibly still while the omega cautiously noses at his neck. “It’s what my mother called me while he was pregnant. I... I liked it, but if you don’t—“

Jason shrugs, his hand going to touch his stomach again before jerking it back to his side. “It’s... I don’t mind. ‘s cute.”

Tim grins into the omega’s hair. “Oh. Good.”

Jason takes in one last deep breath and then sways sleepily up to the bedroom. Tim watches him leave and then begins tidying up. He finishes everything quickly, but waits to give Jason time to adjust. And... maybe to give his own nerves time to settle.

He can’t wait forever though, and he finds himself taking the stairs quicker than what’s perhaps normal. He can’t help it, normally he’d be suiting up for patrol. Instead, he’s been put on leave by Bruce to settle in his omega. His beautiful omega, clad only in sweatpants, perched on the edge of Tim’s canopied bed.

His omega whose scent is sour with fear.

Tim approaches him carefully and presses another kiss to Jason’s hand. Then he gently guides the omega to the center of the bed. He lets Jason get comfortable, lets the omega twist up the blankets just right while he draws the canopy around them to make a den, and then he settles down into the half made nest. Jason tentatively presses himself against Tim’s side like he has to steel himself to it.

That won’t do at all.

He presses a gentle kiss to Jason’s temple and then massages soothing circles into Jason’s back. Jason squirms a little against him before finally taking his hand and resting it over the baby bump. It’s still small, but Tim feels the weight of it like a punch to his own gut as he rubs it gently. Seconds later Jason is relaxing into the bed, his eyes half lidded, and purring.

Warm, content omega scent bleeds out into the bedding and Tim finds himself curling up around Jason protectively. It gets him a sleepy smile that stabs deep at instincts and emotions Tim didn’t know existed. He finds himself staying up long after Jason finally drifts off to sleep to keep watch over his omega.

Nuzzling the top of Jason’s head, he finds it hard to remember any of the reasons he thought he was better off alone.

****

A few months later and they’ve settled into something of a rhythm. Tim goes off to WE every morning and comes home around six to a home cooked meal. Jason’s initial wariness has faded almost completely and the omega has taken over rule of the brownstone with the deftness of a blooded socialite.

He’s finally starting to show more, his oversized t-shifts starting to stretch a little over his baby bump. Still, he’s smaller than he should be, or so the doctor confided to him. Tim, not Jason.

Both doctors visits have been a mixture of frustration and joy because they’ll let Jason see ultrasound pictures, but they won’t give him any real information on how the pregnancy is progressing. Instead they tell everything to Tim, trusting him to protect Jason from the gritty details.

The first time Jason had barely let them leave the building before he demanded to know more, threating to break Tim’s neck if he held anything back. The second time he’d waited until the car. Though Tim could understand why the doctors wanted to keep Jason in the dark, it wasn’t even close to acceptable. It’s not likely Jason’s going to carry to full term, and the chances are good for a miscarriage. Jason has every right to know that.

But due to the health concerns, Jason’s been put on a diet that he holds to more religiously than Tim would ever ask of him.  He’s also been basically put on bed rest, something that makes the omega restless and irritable.

They have a maid come over once a week, but always when he or Jason is home. The omega had nearly snapped his head off for suggesting they allow a stranger into their den, Tim didn’t think it wise to say they shouldn’t be there when she was.

Tim stumbles up the stairs, a headache already starting to build. It’s been a long day at the office, smoothing over someone’s blunder. The smell of supper and mate wraps around him when he opens the door. Stephanie made a joke a few days ago about how he’s become less of a workaholic so he must be swapped with an alien, but honestly how could he stand to stay away from this longer than he has to?

He thinks Jason is finally starting to look forward to him returning every night too. At least, usually the omega is more than willing to let him plant a kiss and then help set the table. Today though, Jason just flicks his gaze to Tim and then turns back to his work with no further acknowledgment.

”Everything okay?” Tim asks, moving over to his mates side. He’s barely skimmed his fingertips across Jason’s elbow before he’s being shoved hard across the room.

His omega draws himself up to full height and bares his teeth with a snarl. “Don’t touch me.”

”Jason, what’s wrong?” Tim stumbles to his feet, but backs up to give Jason space. Most alpha’s would respond by crowding, but he knows Jason well enough to know that will do nothing but upset his mate further.

“What’s wrong?” The omega snarls, scarred arms wrapping around his stomach protectively. “I might be from Crime Alley, but I ain’t stupid.”

“Nobody’s called you stupid.” Tim flails for what could be upsetting his mate. The doctors had warned him that Jason might start getting irrationally angry, but he’d thought that was just alpha sexism. “I don’t know what I’ve done to upset you.”

“You don’t know?” Jason throws his arms dramatically wide with derisive laughter. “I’m sure you’ve got no clue who you’re seeing every other night either. I know we ain’t proper mated, but I’d like to think that if I’m just a front so you can stay in the closet you’d tell me.”

“A front, closet...” Tim finds his mind inexplicably shutting down. “You think that I married you so I can keep seeing an alpha lover?”

“What else am I supposed to think, Timbo?” Jason snarls the nickname with absolute venom. “You leave the house every couple nights and return reeking of some other alpha. Far as I can tell, you’ve never even given me a side eye. ‘M sure I must’ve seemed perfect to you both. Desperate omega, already knocked up so you don’t have to knot me and no one will question our mating.”

“Jason, honey.” Tim breathes, heart in his throat. How could he have missed all of this? Screw Bruce and his need for secrecy. “It’s not like that, I swear. Come with me please.  I promise I can explain.”

“You can explain here.” Jason bites out, but this time his bottom lip quivers.

Tim reaches out hesitantly, but jerks his hand back when Jason snaps his teeth at Tim’s fingers. So he rubs the back of his neck and just comes out with it. “I’m not cheating on you, sweetheart. I’m Red Robin.”

“Red... Robin...” Jason gasps before he starts laughing wetly. “You really do think that I’m an idiot.”

This time Tim does lunge forward, cupping Jason’s face in his hands with a mournful croon. “You’re absolutely brilliant, Jason, and I’ve never thought anything else. Come with me. I promise, I can prove it.”

Jason snarls again in reply, but lets Tim lead him to the small storage room in the back of the house. He presses a panel and unlocks all the security. He’s already added Jason to it, though the omega has no idea.

Jason takes in a sharp breath as they start down the stairs and he can see Tim’s own mini bat cave. Seconds later he gives Tim a hard shove to the ground, omega he might be but Jason is not a weak man. “You, you—“ He snaps his teeth, eyes wild. “You let me think you were cheating on me.”

“I know. I’m sorry.” Tim reaches for his omega and this time Jason lets him pull him down and hold him close. In fact, Jason seems more receptive to him than he ever has, nuzzling at Tim’s neck. “Batman told me I couldn’t tell you yet, security concerns. It never even crossed my mind that you would think I was going out with someone behind your back.”

“Hmph. You can tell Batman where to stick those concerns.” Jason huffs, not entirely mollified by the explanation as he starts to lick over Tim’s skin possessively. Tim holds still, frozen with the fear that one wrong move will cause him to lose the omega. He can’t quite stop his flinch when Jason starts sucking on his neck hard enough to bruise. Omegas aren’t supposed to mark their alphas, aren’t supposed to be possessive enough. Tim bares his throat though, giving Jason more room to work and gets a happy omega noise in response.

When Jason pulls back to examine his work and then tugs open Tim’s work shirt to suck another one over his collarbone, Tim slips a hand into Jason’s hair and scratches soothingly at the omega’s scalp. Jason finishes working the second mark onto Tim’s skin, but before he can start a third, Tim uses his grip on the omega’s hair to pull him into a possessive kiss. He pulls back just a little, close enough that Jason’s stuttered breath still heats his skin. “You are mine, darling. I promise I’ve given you a lot more than just a side long look.”

“Yeah?” Jason, his blustery omega, sounds wrecked and vulnerable.

Tim gives him another kiss before mouthing down Jason’s jaw. He places a few hickies along the omega’s neck before tugging Jason’s shirt off. One hand finds its way to Jason’s rounded belly as he continues to lavish affection on his mate. Their kissing is almost frantic, and Tim has no intention of slowing down.

Not when he can scent Jason’s growing arousal.

It’s not until a kitchen timer goes off that Tim pulls back. His voice drops into an alpha command that sets Jason shivering. “We’re going to pull the food out of the oven. Then you’re going to pick a bed and I’m not going to let you leave it until tomorrow.”

Jason licks his swollen lips and nods.  “Yeah. Okay.”

*****

The apartment is dark when Tim gets there, suit jacket slung over his shoulder. His finger hovers over the light switch, trying to remember if Jason said he was going out that afternoon. He doesn’t think so, but maybe he should have called ahead. It’d just been so long since they’d had an afternoon together and after that long board meeting all Tim can think of is coming home to his mate’s comfort.

Tim kicks off his shoes, tossing them to the corner so Jason won’t be too irritated with him, and lays his jacket down on the back of the couch. He crosses the length of the brownstone with purpose, loosening his tie as he goes.

It’s close to Eleanor’s nap time, Jason could just be putting her down. That’s more likely than ninja kidnapping, right?

When he opens his bedroom door, the warm scent of mate and pup has him collapsing against the doorframe in relief. The soft smack of baby lips and Jason‘s quiet purr pulls him to the canopied bed. With a soft smile he pulls aside the curtains to find Jason asleep and Eleanor nearly so. She yawns and nuzzles against Jason’s chest, rooting for milk.

Tim can’t hold back his own purr as he pulls back to shuck off the rest of his suit. Then he slots himself against Jason’s back, playing big spoon despite Jason’s larger size, pressing kisses against the bare skin in his reach. Once he’s finished with that he starts sucking a new love mark next to the ones already fading on Jason’s neck.

He’s nearly finished by the time Jason half rolls over to look at Tim blearily. “You’re home early.”

”Mmmm. Not early enough. How’s she doing?” Tim presses a kiss to Jason’s temple and then leans on him to gently stroke the baby’s cheek. She immediately turns to mouth at his fingers. “Still fussy?”

“Her fever’s down.” Jason wiggles underneath Tim, trying to escape without unsettling Ellie. “Finally got her to eat something earlier. Guess I fell asleep with her. She’s still not sleeping for more than a few minutes at a time.”

Tim leans back to study Jason while the omega helps Eleanor latch on. He’s got dark circles under his eyes from the long nights and longer days with the fussy baby. Despite getting the best care possible during the majority of his pregnancy, they weren’t quite able to make up for the first month or so of abuse and neglect Jason suffered. Ellie had been born prematurely and is still prone to getting sick even if she’s finally off of all the tubes.

Sometimes Tim wishes he could kill Jason’s first alpha.

Sounds of satisfied nursing fills the room as Eleanor feeds with a vengeance. The tight vice of worry loosens in Tim’s chest. The doctor had said one of the surest signs she was improving would be her appetite coming back.

“See? Nothing to worry about. Why don’t I take her for a little bit once she’s done, let you get a full nap?” Tim runs one hand up and down Jason’s side, trying to soothe away the fear he can still scent from the omega. He doesn’t think that Ellie’s left her mother’s side once while she’s been sick. “We need to get you some sleep, sweetheart.”

”I gotta start dinner in about fifteen minutes.” Jason’s eyes slowly drift shut again. Then they snap open and he whines,  nearly flinching away from Ellie’s vicious gumming.  “Oww, baby doll. Don’t bite.”

“I’ll order a pizza.” Tim presses a kiss to Jason’s neck to hide his grin. A kiss that migrates upward to Jason’s scent gland. He nibbles, teasing the skin until Jason’s squirming beneath him. “You really need to rest.”

“Tim....” He groans, pushing at the alpha. “Go ‘way, Tim. ‘m trying to feed Ellie an’ you’re makin’ it too hard.”

With a huff, Tim relents.  He still pauses to rub his nose against Jason’s before sitting up. “No cuddles for Timmy? I’m sad.”

”Timmy can cuddle his pillow, ‘m too tired to be aroused an’ won’t be happy if it happens.” Jason says with a stubborn pout, nuzzling the top of Ellie’s head.

“What if it really is just cuddles?” He asks, slotting himself against the omega’s back again. His hand comes to rest on Jason’s hip, one finger slipping under his waistband. “Then I’ll take baby girl into the other room to play while you sleep.“

“Cuddles don’t involve your hands down my pants.” Jason huffs, but leans into Tim’s embrace. Tim doesn’t respond, content to listen to his omega purr to their pup. Somehow snuggling together while Jason feeds Ellie feels more intimate than even sex.

A few minutes later, Ellie lets Jason slip from her mouth and shows no interest in latching back on. Jason moves to sit up with her, but Tim sweeps her up into his arms to burp her. Jason stays half propped up for a minute before rolling over and dropping his head into Tim’s lap. He rubs his cheek up and down Tim’s leg, using Tim’s thigh as a pillow while the alpha gently helps Ellie burp. It still takes her almost twice as long as it should.

Jason relaxes as the baby coos quietly, making a soft noise in the back of his throat to reassure her that he’s still there. One large hand reaches up to stroke her cheek as he breathes, “She’s so perfect, Tim.”

“You did so good with her.” Tim agrees, letting the omega pull him back down to snuggle. He still thinks that he should take her back out to the living room, but knows that if they leave the nest without the omega’s permission Jason won’t be able to sleep. So instead he settles Ellie in against Jason’s bare stomach and lays down to intertwine their legs.

Automatically, the omega curls his body around the little girl and Tim mimics him, purring until the omega falls asleep. His phone goes off, something about paperwork that didn’t get done. For a minute he hesitates, his family is asleep and there’s a lot he could get done waiting for them to wake up. Then he glances down at Jason and their sleeping pup.

Tim turns the device off and tosses it into a drawer. He has something more important to take care of. 


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> honestly, just more domestic fluff while exploring a little bit of what it means to be an omega. idk guys. this was meant to be a one shot and now I have ideas.

 “Hey, baby.” Tim drops a file down onto the coffee table and crouches down next to the couch Jason is sprawled across, one arm over his eyes. Tough as he might look, Tim’s mate is woefully dramatic when he’s upset. “You doing okay?”

“I’m tired,” his mate sniffles, “Laurel called dibs on bringing cookies to the potluck so now I have to actually make something, Biz and Artemis are still out in the mountains so they don’t have phone service, and my chest hurts because Ellie won’t stop biting.”

“She’s a year old now, she’s probably okay to start weaning if she’s hurting you that bad.” Tim knows even as he speaks that Jason won’t wean their daughter until he has absolutely no other choice. He nudges Jason up so he can slip in behind and settle Jason’s upper body in his lap. “You should have asked me to stay home. I would have.”

“You have that merger, Tam woulda killed you if you called off.” Jason turns and curls into Tim with a distressed whine, arching his neck so Tim can mouth at it gently. “And Damian would never let it go if you had to stay home because of your hormonal omega.”

“Quite frankly, I don’t care what Damian says. I’m worried about you, Jason.” He pauses to breathe in his omega’s scent. They haven’t shared a single one of Jason’s heats yet, still waiting for them to come back after the pregnancy, but the OB had said that they should start up again soon. “Do you think your heat is finally coming then?”

“Dunno.” Jason nudges his head up under Tim’s chin, rubbing against him. “The doc said they’d be irregular when they first start coming back. Might not get one this month after all. How was the office?”

“Boring, mostly.” Tim rubs Jason’s back gently, tipping his chin so Jason can suck his own marks onto Tim’s neck. He gets a lot of flak from the board for letting his omega get so possessive, but he doesn’t mind wearing Jason’s claims. Honestly he’s grown to almost enjoy them, though nothing comes close to seeing Jason marked up as his.  “We finally managed to get that secret project done. It’s going to be unveiled tomorrow.”

“That’s great, Timmy.” Jason nips his chin gently, before offering his lips for a kiss. What starts out as chaste comfort starts to deepen, but before they can go too far Jason pulls back with a quiet groan. “Eleanor is down for her nap still. Lemme go check on her and then we can celebrate.“

“Want me to see if one of the others can babysit tonight?” Tim stands and wraps an arm around Jason’s waist so the man can’t escape. Sometimes Jason doesn’t mind letting Dick, Alfred, or Bruce watch Ellie for them so they can have some alone time, sometimes Jason would rather die first. It really just depends.

Tim tries to be understanding. He’s never asked, but he gets the feeling that Jason lost a pup before he came to be Tim’s mate. Either that or his first mate threatened to have their pups taken from him. Whichever it is, Jason is terrified of losing their daughter. When Eleanor was born, his omega had been inconsolable after the doctors had to take her away to stabilize her.

Still, he has good news and he really wants to spend an evening spoiling his mate. Dick’s already on standby for babysitting if Jason is up to it.

After a hesitation, Jason nods. “For a few hours.“

“Picking her up at eleven okay?” Tim presses tiny kisses across Jason’s face. “That will give us something like five hours.”

Jason tips his head so the next kiss lands on his mouth. “That sounds perfect. I’ll go wake her up from her nap.”

“I’ll give Dick a call, he said he’s in town today.” Tim grins and doesn’t release Jason until after he’s given him another thorough kiss.

He watches Jason head back up the stairs, admiring the view—those _thighs_.

The phone call is quick, Dick already expecting it. In fact Jason has barely enough time to get Ellie’s things together, while Tim gets sleepy help from their daughter in setting up part of Jason’s surprise, before Dick is knocking at the door.  

The appearance of Uncle Dickie has little Eleanor awake in seconds, squealing and dancing around. It takes them another ten minutes to get her calm enough to be strapped into the car and another ten minutes of letting Jason lecture Dick on how to care for her to get _him_ calm enough for the pair to leave. They watch Dick and Elie wave goodbye as they pull away, heading to either the manor or penthouse, and then Tim is pulling Jason back into the brownstone.

He presses Jason back against the door and kisses him softly, pulling Jason down to meet him instead of standing on his toes. After just a few moments he pulls back and strokes Jason’s side. “C’mon, baby. You need spoiled. Let’s get you into a bath.”

“Timmy.” Jason whines, immediately nuzzling against Tim again. “Quit trying to seduce me with your mini swimming pool.”

“Only when it stops working, sweetheart.” He drops a kiss onto his mate’s hair and gently tugs him into the right direction. “An omega like you? I have to use every advantage I can get when courting.”

That gets him a laugh that fades into a soft gasp at the candlelit bathroom. The bathwater is already drawn and Tim helps Jason strip down and ease into the tub before sitting at the edge himself. Jason groans quietly and rests his head on Tim’s thigh.

He counts it as a victory when he realizes Jason’s words are quietly slurring. “Already mated, Timmy. No more courting.”

“Sweetheart, we’re going to be courting for the rest of our lives.” Tim strokes his fingers through Jason’s hair with a quiet hum, gently working the tangles out. Eventually his hand slips down to massage his mate’s tense back. “You sure everything is okay? You’ve been off this past month.”

“Just tired. Think I might have picked up a stomach bug from Ellie or Biz. I’ve got that doctor appointment tomorrow your brother is going to ‘chaperone’ me at, but it’s probably nothing.” Jason’s breath is warm through his shirt as the omega nuzzles his stomach. “I know I said celebrate, but I don’t think I’m up for much tonight.“

“That’s alright, Jason.” Tim reassures, curling protectively over his omega. “Just tired or remembering?”

Jason’s response is a quiet, reluctant whine.

“Hey... That’s okay, baby.” Tim soothes, leaning back to get a cloth and begins to wash Jason’s back. Tamping down the disappointment and anger at Jason’s first alpha deep enough the omega can’t scent it, he asks,“Are cuddles okay or do you just want to nap?”

“You leave me alone in a cold bed and you’ll be sorry.” Jason’s lips pull back in a snarl, but he’s betrayed by his soft purr.

“I just want to be sure.” He soothes, not quite able to hold back the rage festering in his chest. Glad as he is to be able to snuggle Jason and provide some comfort, he’s furious that Jason had never gotten anything close to that before their marriage and that’s why he doesn’t mind it. Stifling a growl, he presses gentle kisses across Jason’s face.

Jason gives him a small smile, purring a little louder in a very pointed manner before arching back in a stretch and sighing happily. The sight of his omega clearly enjoying being spoiled and petted soothes Tim’s anger back down into something manageable. Jason’s smile turns smug as he goes back to nuzzling against Tim. “I’m okay now, we’re okay.”

Tim hums a little before nudging Jason gently. “Here, turn around and I’ll wash your hair.”

Jason shifts quickly, leaning into Tim’s touch. He takes his time getting Jason clean, being extra careful with his omega’s tender chest. The delicate skin there is chapped and raw, so Tim makes a note to set out balm before running Jason a clean bath, getting him an odd look.  He drops another kiss on top of the omega’s head and pulls back. “I’m going to get dinner, you sit and soak. Any preferences?”

“I would kill for egg rolls and fried rice.” Jason groans as he sprawls out in the massive tub. Tim bought it custom during Jason’s pregnancy to help with his back pain. “And red velvet cupcakes.”

“You got it.” Tim grins and pauses at the door. “You want one of your books?”

“You’re an angel. Little Women please.” 

*****

When he gets back home, Jason is wrapped up in their comforter and curled up in the corner of their couch with his book. Nearby their fake fireplace is turned on and the lights are dimmed.  Tim doesn’t bother to temper his smile when he sets the cupcake box down on his husband’s lap and presses a kiss against his temple.  “All for you. I hope you appreciate everything I went through to get you these. I had to bribe Emai.”

“I hope Emai had the good sense to wring every last penny from you, rich boy.” Jason leans into the kiss before tipping his head to rub noses.

A throaty purr bubbles up, possessive despite himself, as their scents mingle. Jason leans into it, shifting to make room for Tim. In no time they’re settled against each other on the couch, Jason’s head on Tim’s chest.

They stay there for a while, Tim feeding Jason while the omega reads out loud, but eventually even Tim’s patience wears out.  He strokes a hand through Jason’s hair.  “Hey, love. Do you think you could do me a favor and look through some papers for me?”

“Mmm.” Jason blinks at him for a moment, still caught up in the plight of the March family. “What kind of papers?”

“The secret project kind.” Tim sweeps up the file and displays it triumphantly.

“Ah. Of course. How foolish of me.” His mate sets aside his book, after carefully marking the page, and opens it up. Immediately a small frown crosses his face. “You’re going to school? I thought you said Bruce couldn’t pay you enough to go back.”

“He can’t.” Tim chuckles, despite the nervous pounding of his heart. He taps the papers twice. “They’re for you, sweetheart.”

“Tim.” A riot of emotions play across Jason’s face, featuring painful hope and devastating heartbreak prominently. “Tim, I appreciate it I do but it’s basically  _illegal_. We’ve talked about this, I don’t want you getting in trouble if I get found out and—”

Tim silences him with a quick peck of a kiss before pulling back. He had a speech planned out, but at the moment he can’t remember a single word. “Starting tomorrow, Gotham University will be accepting omega applicants. Only a handful at first and you’re only allowed to pick from their ‘gentler’ majors, because we need to prove to them omegas can be excellent students, but I’m hopeful that in the next few years we can eliminate even those barriers... The Wayne foundation will, of course, be providing scholarships to the omegas accepted so their alphas will have no financial reason to withhold approval and I— well I hoped— I thought you might like to be the first one to apply.”

“You're serious? They’re changing the rules?”  Jason pulls back to look him over more fully. “You're willing to let me go to school, even though I’ve got Ellie and the home to take care of?”

“I would never joke about something so important to you. I wanted to tell you before, but I was afraid that we wouldn’t be able to manage this so quickly.” Tim strokes gentle fingers down Jason’s cheek before cupping his face. “Ellie and the home are my responsibility too. I can work at home just as well as the office while you have class.”

Jason’s breath catches. “Oh.”

“Mmhm.” Smiling, Tim leans in and nuzzles Jason’s nose. “You can go to school, baby.

That gets him a eager kiss as Jason scrambles up into his lap, papers set aside reverently. Tim can’t help but laugh into it, despite being almost crushed under his omega’s weight,  settling his hands on the Jason’s hips. When Jason pulls back from the kiss, he immediately begins to pepper Tim’s entire face with delicate pecks.

Eventually, Jason is distracted by the application  again, saving Tim from suffocation by kisses. “Early childhood education, English, or music major...”

“Wonder which one you’re going to pick.” Tim teases, holding Jason a pen to start filling the information out. He has to duck Jason’s lazy swipe at his head, but it’s worth it.

All of the long hours, the multiple borderline screaming matches with various government officials, all of it is worth it to get to see the rare, wide grin on Jason’s face as he fills out the information.

He’s positive Jason would be able to make it in on his own merit, having managed to self educate to a high school level after being sold to an abusive alpha immediately upon presenting with only minimal schooling before that. Tim’s prepared to pull string though, if he has to. Nepotism at its finest maybe, but Jason deserves  the chance to rant about Austen’s literary genius to people who will actually understand what he’s saying.

Tim will do what needs done to make sure he gets it. 


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason’s doctor appointment doesn’t go as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here we are with more. sorry it took literally two months (to the day actually...) i don’t have a lot of spare time i can spend on fanfic. hope you enjoy this.

Tim is approximately half a step inside the office when his cell rings. He answers without looking at the caller ID. “This is Tim.”

“Jason needs tests done, but the doctor won’t tell either of us what they are.” Dick’s voice is tight with anger. “I’mtold that’s for his alpha to know only and they won’t even speak to Jason.”

“Leave. I’ll have Barbara find him an appointment at Gotham Mercy and we’ll meet there. ” Tim pauses only to grab his satchel and keys and he’s heading to the exit. “Is he okay?”

“He’s the same as he was when I picked him up this morning.” Dick answers, so if something is wrong he has no clue what it would be. “We’ll be on our way as soon as I finish putting the fear of the Waynes into them.”

Despite his worry, Tim can’t help his chuckle. “Just don’t scream too loudly at the poor aids.”

“I don’t know what you take me for, Timmy. The doctor’s here so I gotta go.” And the line clicks off before Tim can ask to speak with his husband. He frowns at his phone for a  second before pulling up the text messenger.

”Everything okay, Tim?” Bruce approaches, for once his Brucie act is toned down.  Worry lines crease his forehead. “Jason had a doctors appointment, right?”

“Yeah. He and Dick are leaving. I’ve got to have Barbara get him an appointment with Leslie if possible.” Tim pinches the bridge of his nose, sucking in a breath. “The doctor wanted to run tests without telling either of them what they were for.”

“I see.” Bruce’s expression goes tight. “Take the rest of today off and let me know if you need the rest of the week.”

“Thanks.” Something in him dies at the idea of just taking time off, but if Jason’s sick... He taps the button for the elevator. “The good news is that I don’t think either of them punched anyone while we were on the phone.”

“That’s impressive.” Bruce slides in beside him.

“Mm. Don’t be too impressed. The doctor was walking in when Dick got off.”

Bruce’s lips stay half quirked in amusement. From him that might as well be a belly laugh. “I’ll have the PR team on standby.”

“Thanks.” Tim grins back, but it quickly fades. Honestly, he feels sick. This is most definitely not the first time the doctor has pulled something like this. After every appointment he’d had to talk Jason into going back. “We should have looked harder for a good OB. It’s just... he’s one of the best in the state and with Ellie it felt like we didn’t have the time to find someone else.”

“You probably didn’t. Eleanor was an emergency situation. You both did everything you could for her and now I have a beautiful granddaughter to dote on.” Bruce clasps Tim’s shoulder in a firm, comforting, grip. “You put up with what you had to in order to save Ellie’s life, but now you’re free to find someone willing to take care of Jason. The fact that he’s unacceptable now, doesn’t mean that he wasn’t the best choice before.”

“Thanks, Bruce.” Tim relaxes marginally and lets Bruce bump their foreheads together briefly. Then he’s stepping out of the elevator. “Have Tam send me the important files and I’ll try to go over them tonight.”

“I’m pulling rank and you’re not getting the files.” The Brucie persona is back in full force in front of the bulk of WE’s employees. “You go home and play with my grandbaby. Work can wait.”

“Sure thing, B.” Tim stifles his annoyance since he doesn’t have time to deal with Brucie, and starts dialing Barbara’s number. She picks up almost immediately.

“What can I do for you?”

“I need you to get Jason an appointment at Gotham Mercy. Today if possible.” He pins his phone between his ear and shoulder as he unlocks his Acura.  Father of one Tim might be, but he still enjoys his sportscars. “Have you heard from Dick?”

“Appointment’s already made. You have an hour.” She sounds worried, and that... that’s not good. “I hacked into their records, but because Dick wouldn’t consent to the tests without Jason’s permission nothing was submitted as an order. Everything they do have on file seems fine.”

“He’s been feeling run down lately, he thought it was a stomach bug.” Tim’s grip tightens on the wheel before he slowly loosens each finger off the leather of the wheel. “I thought maybe it was stress, but...”

“It might still be.” Barbara soothes. “For all we know, he might have wanted to do something routine like a Pap test or to check for breast cancer. It’s not like there isn’t precedence for that. They refused to tell Jason his due date in case you wanted him induced on a certain day, if you’ll recall.”

Another deep breath in through his nose before letting it out carefully. Someone cuts him off and it’s more than a little cathartic to slam his horn. “Will you look through their records one more time? I’m going to call Jason and make sure he’s okay.”

“He’s gonna be okay, Tim.” She reassures, her tone unusually gentle. “I’ll let you know what I find.”

She clicks off the line and immediately Tim has his phone dialing Jason’s. With every ring his heart rate speeds up a notch until finally he hears the shrill laughter of Ellie enjoying herself on the other end.

“Shhh, Ellie. Mommy’s trying to talk to Daddy on the phone. I kn- I know, peanut.  Ice cream is so good huh? Mmm. Such good sharing. Why don’t you share with Uncle Dickie?” Jason’s voice comes though distantly, perhaps holding the phone out of their daughter’s grabby hands. That, more than anything else, serves to sooth the burning anxiety in his chest.  Then Jason is back. “Hey babe, sorry about that. Dick was positive we earned ice cream with our self control and as soon as Ellie heard ice cream, I was outvoted.”

“Ice cream sounds like an excellent idea.” Tim can relax into the seat. Jason is fine, he’s getting ice cream with their daughter. Dick—Nightwing—is there to keep an eye on their safety. Everything is fine. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fine, baby. A little angry at the doctor, but there’s nothingwrong.” Jason’s voice is audibly softer with the hint of a purr. “I’m just a little tired, and that’s normal, darling. Ellie is finally up and runnin’ around like it’s goin’ out of style. Chasin’ her’s enough to exhaust anyone, even if my hormones weren’t trying to settle back in. We’ll go to the doctor’s appointment and then you can go back to work—“

“I took the rest of the day off so we can go back home and rest or maybe we can have a movie night or something with Ellie.” Tim cuts in, careful to not sound angry. “I’ve told you that you’re more important than work.”

“I appreciate it, baby.” Jason hums, pausing to coo encouragingly at their daughter. “I just don’t want you getting in trouble.”

“No chance of that. Perks of having your daddy as boss.” Tim teases, parroting back one of Jason’s fondest complaints—though they both know the omega means nothing by it.

It gets him an amused snort. “Nepotist.”

“Didn’t hear you complaining when it got you that bathtub.” Tim says, flipping off the car trying to pass him on the exit.

“Sometimes I think I'd marry that thing.” Jason sighs dreamily, before breaking off into a yelp that turns faint. “Ellie give that back.”

“Daaaa.” Ellie shrieks through his speaker, splitting his eardrums but bringing a grin to his face regardless.

He manages to get in a few ‘yeahs’ between the baby babble as he pulls up to the shop, parking quickly. The second he steps in the door, he can hear Ellie’s loud chatter despite Jason’s frantic attempts to calm her.  He watches from the doorway as Jason and Dick work together to distract Ellie from the phone.

”Hey, Babe. I gotta go. Peanut’s getting to be a handful. See you in a few?”

Tim winks at Dick before his brother can rat him out. “Quick as I can get there. Love you.”

“Love you too.” Jason sounds distracted, quite understandably as Tim watches Ellie smear ice cream in her mother’s hair.

Tim crosses the restaurant quickly to drop a kiss right over the sticky patch Jason is trying to pick at.  For a second his mate startles but then his scent warms like cherry pie and he sinks back against Tim.

“Quick as you can.” Jason says wryly, tipping his face up for another kiss, this time on the lips.

Tim nuzzles against his nose before bending to scoop up Ellie. “How’s my little peanut?”

“She’s a sticky little peanut.” Jason warns, trying clean the mess from his curls with a baby wipe. It’s doomed from the start, but he’ll let his husband try. “Your suit’s probably ruined.”

“I’ll buy a new one.” Tim deliberately doesn’t look at Jason, he feels the disapproval well enough without witnessing the glare.  “Ooor, I’ll send it in for dry cleaning?”

Before Jason can respond, Ellie shoves her ice cream sticky fingers in Tim’s mouth.

”What a good sharing girl.” Dick coos while Jason snickers beside him.

Tim pulls a face, but scooches onto the bench next to Jason, pressing another kiss to his cheek. Ellie squeals again before reaching for her mother and Tim passes her over happily so he can steal Jason’s sundae. “Mmm. That’s my family. The best at sharing.”

“Get your own.” Jason says, snatching it back. His plush bottom lip droops in a pout. “I earned this.”

“You did earn it.” Tim says, planting another kiss while Dick gags on the other side of the table. He’s tempted to flip his brother off, but Jason has been fanatical about making sure no unclean speech touches their daughters ears, so he settles for a roll of his eyes. “You’re just jealous, Dickie.”

“Me? Jealous? Nah. No offense, Jay Jay.” Dick winks, slurping at his monstrous concoction of a shake. He accompanies his next statement with a waggle of his eyebrows. “You’ve got a nice little family, Timmy, but I‘ve got plenty of options to keep me company.”

Now it’s Tim’s turn to gag.

Jason on the other hand levels a dark glare at Dick, one that wouldn’t look out of place on crime alley’s streets. “I sure hope you didn’t imply in front of my daughter what I thought you did, Grayson. You’re already lucky I let you stick around with your name being what it is.”

“Ah... and I’m very grateful, Jason.” Dick flashes an unapologetic grin. “I’d be very sad without my Ellie girl to spoil.”

“Hmph. She could do with a little less spoiling.” Jason nuzzles against their baby’s cheek. It’s more than a touch hypocritical, but Tim figures Jason’s more than earned the right to spoil their pup however he wants. “I think our princess is done eating. I’ll take her to the bathroom to change and wash up and then we should probably head out so you can start filling out my paperwork, Tim.”

“Hopefully not too much. Barbara said she’d transfer most of it over.”

Jason hums in response, snatching up the diaper bag to head to the restroom. Tim watches him go, soaking in the sight of his mate and pup.  

*****

The waiting room is a soft dove gray, decorated with portraits of flowers and babies. A small corner is partitioned with toys for babies to play with their mothers while their escorts fill out paperwork.

 Dick takes Ellie to go play, having volunteered to come along and babysit in case something does happen to be the matter. 

 The receptionist brings out a clipboard of documents that need filled out and gives it to Jason, who flushes prettily as he tries to pass it over to Tim.  “Ah, I’m the omega. Tim is my Alpha.”

Tim resolves to spend the night proving to Jason that he’s irresistibly attractive. His pretty mate is always self-conscious about his larger than average size, and more than once Tim has had to kiss away tears from those long lashes because someone mistook his mate for an alpha. After the events of the day, Tim’s patience is running thin.

His lip curls back, but before he can correct the ignorant beta, she nudges the clipboard back towards Jason with a gentle smile. “I know. There are a few places for your alpha to sign, but we find that things go smoother if we have our patients fill out paperwork themselves.”

If he weren’t already happily married, Tim could have kissed the woman for the way her words make Jason light up. Maybe he’ll try to set her up with Dick instead. Almost everyone is attracted to Dick.

Jason sets to work, curling against Tim’s side with a happy hum. There are a variety of questions on there that Tim’s never seen on paperwork before. Some include questions about pain and mood swings during Jason’s heats and menstruation, others are about skin issues that could pop up at various times of his cycle.

Pleased omega scent curls around them as Jason works, but then sours.

The section he’s on now is pretty typical of everything he’s filled out before, questions about previous pregnancies and family history. Tim’s heart aches when Jason scrawls a shaky number two for pregnancies and then writes, one carried to term, one miscarriage.

Before Tim can do more than tighten his hold around Jason’s shoulders, the omega has flipped to the last page, current medications and allergies, and filled it out before passing the clipboard for Tim to sign. He won’t look up now, his scent embarrassed and hurt.

“I won’t make you talk about it,” Tim sets the paperwork aside for a moment, hugging Jason closer to ramble, “and it changes nothing about how I see you, okay? Ellie is a beautiful rainbow baby, and you’re safe now with me. I’m not upset.”

“Thanks.” Jason says, voice trembling. “I just can’t—“

“You don’t need to.” He reassures. “If they ask questions I can step out or—“

“Can we deal with that if it comes up?”

“Yeah, baby.” Tim drops a kiss to Jason’s hair, holding him tighter, only loosening his hold a little when the receptionist returns.

“Is everything alright here?” She asks brightly. “If you’ve filled out the paperwork I can take it.”

“Thank you.” Tim forces a business smile on and returns the clipboard.

She doesn’t retreat, instead looking directly at Jason. “If you’re ready, we can go ahead and take a urine sample.”

“Oh. Yeah.” Jason stands awkwardly before pushing the diaper bag towards Tim. “Do you think you could check up on the kids and maybe wipe them down with a few disinfectants?”

“You do know that Dick is older than both of us, right?” Tim laughs, but moves to do as he’s told. Jason is borderline germaphobic and he figures it doesn’t hurt anything to make sure Ellie isn’t eating too many germs.

Jason just pulls a face and glances over at Dick, preforming a handstand for a crowd of three toddlers and two omegas. “Are you sure?”

Tim lightly taps Jason’s shoulder with his knuckles before pressing a kiss to his mate’s cheek. “Be nice. He’s free babysitting.”

Jason’s expression is unamused, but there’s a faint purring noise in the back of his throat so Tim doesn’t think he minds as much as he says he does.

Ellie is easy enough to wipe down, well used to her mother’s quirks. Dick is the problem child, he squirms while Tim resorts to pinning him down so he can wipe the beta’s hands. “Why are you like this?”

“I hate the smell.” Dick whines, sending a wink to one of the pretty omegas.

Tim flicks his head before releasing him.

Ellie crawls over to him and tugs on his pant leg with happy baby babble, distracting him before he can start wiping down Dick’s face for being such a... dick.

“Hey baby girl.” Tim hums happily, nuzzling her cheeks and gently nibbling at her neck. “Having fun?”

She squeals and pats Tim’s cheek repeatedly before grabbing his hair and tugging.

The watching omegas all coo, causing his face to heat up. Thankfully Jason returns at that moment, sliding his arms around Tim’s waist. He leans down to whisper in his ear, “Sorry I took so long. They wanted to make sure I feel safe at home.”

“Mm. Good.” Tim smiles up at his omega. “I’m willing to wait a few extra minutes for that.”

“Jason Drake-Wayne?” Beside him, Jason startled at hearing his name instead of Tim’s.  “If you’ll follow me.” 

*****

“Overall, I’d say you’re in perfect health.” The doctor smiles gently as he pulls back. “There’s definitely some scarring, but I think the damage overall is minimal.”

“Then why did the other doctor want to conduct further tests?” Jason asks.

The doctor tips his head thoughtfully, and pushes over to the paperwork the nurse brought in moments earlier before arriving to witness the pelvic examination. He doesn’t dismiss Jason’s question, or glower at the omega. Instead he seems to value Jason’s opinions and questions, maybe more than he considers Tim’s.

The relief he feels at this is beyond expression, but it doesn’t compare to the way the doctor’s face brightens instead of turning serious.

He passes the top paper over to Jason. “Well, I suspect they got the same results from your urine test that we did. Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Drake-Wayne. You’re expecting.”

“His heats still haven’t come back.” Tim’s words sound faint to his own ears. He can’t hear anything past the rush of hope pounding in his ears.

“Well, evidently they did.” The doctor says. “It’s likely it was a quieter heat. Those tend to have few, if any, symptoms. Now you said your previous pregnancies have been hard?”

“My last Alpha was...” Jason chokes and presses harder into Tim’s side.

For a minute it looks like the doctor is going to touch Jason’s knee, but he pulls back instead. He meets Tim’s eyes before turning back to Jason. “Well, the good news is that I don’t think you’ll have those issues with this one. I didn’t see any physical abnormalities, though of course we’ll want to keep a close eye on things as they progress.”

Jason’s response is a tight nod, one hand finding his stomach.

“Something you should keep in mind,” the doctor continues, “is that after an omega escapes an abusive situation and settles into a pack they feel safe in, their first few pregnancies with their new alpha tend to be multiples.”

“How many?” Tim’s hands drops to rest over Jason’s comfortingly.

”At least two, but as many as five has been recorded. The average is three.” The doctor smiles. “It’s still too earlier to tell how many yet, but if there is a litter I don’t want it to come as a shock.”

“Thank you.” Jason murmurs. He’s gone pale and Tim just wants to get him home and into bed. The elation he feels at babies is sinking when Jason doesn’t react the same.

Thankfully the doctor doesn’t seem to notice “We’ll get you some prenatal vitamins and schedule you another appointment in a couple weeks. I don’t think you’ll have any issues, but we just want to keep an eye on them.”

Tim nods and accepts the paperwork for Jason when the omega nudges him to risks it. He sets up the appointment at the reception desk so Jason can take their pup from Dick. When he goes over to collect his family, Jason is humming to a sleepy Ellie.

“Everything okay?” Dick asks.

Tim shrugs a shoulder. “I think so. Could just be the long day.”

“Alright... Text me if you need anything.” Dick drops a kiss on Tim’s forehead. “I’ll be staying a few days at the manor. Bruce wanted my help while I’m here.”

The beta approaches Jason, not cautiously, but with care. He gives Jason a side hug while kissing Ellie’s cheek goodbye. Just before he pulls back, he gives Jason a gentle squeeze. “And let me hear from you too, huh? Need to make sure my baby brother is taking good care of you.”

“We’ll see.” Jason huffs gently, shifting Ellie so she can rest her head on his shoulder.

******

On the drive home, Jason sits in the backseat so Ellie can suck on his finger. The second Jason pulls his finger free to unfasten her,  she starts to wail again.

It’s not until they’re inside and Jason’s settled on the couch to nurse her that she calms. Tim fetches the nursing pillow to prop the baby up so she won’t tire Jason’s arms too much.

Then he stands behind Jason, leaning over the arm of the couch to steal a kiss. “You doing okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Tim slips in behind Jason after the omega makes room, half cradling his massive body. “If you’re not ready to have another baby, I have access to resources. We can—“

“Please no.” The strangled begging shoots through Tim’s heart like a serrated knife. “Please. I want them.”

“Jason, I would be delighted to have as many pups as you’re willing to give me.” Tim presses kisses up and down his neck, one hand slipping around to stroke the arm cradling Elllie. “Every single one will be a gift, but I want you to know you have options. I don’t want you to feel forced.”

Gradually the tall omega loosens, leaning into Tim. “I want them so badly.”

“Then we’ll have them.” He promises, intertwining their fingers and giving a squeeze. “You’re already a wonderful, talented mother and Eleanor will be the best big sister the world has ever seen. You don’t need to worry.”

“But what about school?” Jason’s watery voice trembles. “They said my due date is August 2nd.The baby won’t even be a month old by then.”

“There are accommodations to make that work.” Tim reassures, his heart breaking. Having children should be a blessing, not a means to limit access to an education. “Omegas with pups who are nursing will be allowed to have their pups with them if they want, with time between each class to feed them.  We don’t live far from the university. You can take them, or I can bring them to you when it’s time, or you can pump and I’ll give them bottles just while you’re at school. We’ll make it work, Jay. I promise.”

He presses another kiss against the omega’s temple. “I promise.”


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason and Tim address a misunderstanding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> slowly but surely i’m making progress. Jason’s first alpha makes an appearance next chapter so look forward to that.

They hoard the news of pups to themselves for the first month. It’s a sweet secret shared only between them.

Tim still can’t believe it. He’s going to have pups. Plural. Ellie is going to be a big sister.  Most days it still feels like a dream that he even has them. To have her, Jason, and more pups... he’s in heaven. He truly is.

Barbara probably knows. She gives him a quirked smile when he drops off a packet of paper files that Cass asked for in Hong Kong, but she doesn’t say anything.

Bruce probably suspects, but he doesn’t say anything either as he lightens Tim’s workload gradually maybe hoping that would keep him from noticing.

He wants to fight it, but it means that more often than not he gets to go home early to his family.  To his growing family. Jason is playing blocks on the floor with Eleanor, stacking them one by one so she can knock them to the ground.

Tim takes off his things and puts them away, instead of tossing them where they land, out of respect for his mate. Then he bends down to swoop up the baby crawling towards him at top speeds. He takes a moment to kiss all over her chubby little cheeks before taking another to kiss each of Jason’s freckles.

He finishes greeting his family by crouching down to kiss the tiniest of bumps on Jason’s belly. He does it everytime he comes home, did the same thing with Ellie in the later months, and it still manages to put a blush on his mate’s face everytime.

“How are my favorite people doing?” Tim nuzzles against Ellie as he asks, passing her to her mother when she reaches for him. “I missed all of you.”

Jason flushes brighter and leads Tim into the kitchen. After settling Ellie in her high chair with some Cheerios, Jason starts heating up last night’s stir fry. “I think she’s going to start walking soon. She’s been coasting all over the house. Gave me a heart attack after her nap when she managed to get into your office. I don’t think she touched anything, but you probably want to check.”

“I’ll check.” Tim steals another kiss before pulling the dishes out to set the table. He pauses by Ellie’s high chair to tickle the baby’s ribs. “Did you terrorize Mommy all day?”

Ellie shrieks with laughter and then launches into long winded baby babble. She slaps the tray a few times before swiping her hand sideways and knocking most of her cereal to the floor.

For a few seconds he and Jason both stare at the mess before Tim’s laughter breaks the spell and earns him the stink eye from his mate. “I’ll take that as a yes then. Don't worry about it, Jay. I'll clean it up."

"You'd better clean it up." Jason threatens, waving his wooden spoon. "If you don't, I'm gonna beat you black and blue."

"Mmm. Yes please, Mommy." Red Robin's reflexes are all that save him from taking the wooden spoon to the head. It's worth it though to get a precious glimpse of his mate riled up.

He cleans the mess quickly, setting Ellie up with another handful of cheerios. While she very seriously pinches each piece to bring to her mouth, Tim approaches Jason and drops a kiss to the bump of his spine at the base of his neck. "Can I be forgiven yet?"

"Why should I forgive you?" Jason shrugs him loose, but keeps his body angled towards Tim. There's a slight twitch at the corner of his lip, but everything else is stern anger. "Eleanor is rightthere. What if she repeats you? Hmm?"

"She's not speaking yet." Tim chuckles, sliding his lips behind Jason's ear.

Jason tips his nose in the air with a huff, but can't suppress a shudder at the trail of Tim's kisses over his scent gland. "Do you want those to be her first words?"

“I would love for Mommy to be her first word.” Tim scrapes his teeth over the gland and gets pushed away for his efforts at seduction.

His inner alpha purrs at his omega's blush and flustered scent even as Jason snaps his teeth at him. He grins at Jason until the omega snorts quietly and turns back to their meal. Jason’s dismissal is stern, but sends a different, softer kind of heat blooming in Tim’s chest, “Go make sure your daughter doesn’t make another mess.”

“Yes, Mommy.” He sing songs and then darts to put Ellie between them. Tim gets to spend the rest of the meal cooing to his baby before they all retreat to Jason’s bed for a snuggle.

Ellie falls asleep nursing, nuzzling close to her mother’s chest while overhead her parents share more than a few sweet kisses.

Teasingly, Tim hooks one leg around Jason’s and wiggles his other leg between so that their legs are tangled together. The curve of their bodies shelters their pups, born and unborn alike. Tim’s back is the door, with Jason’s pressed against the wall. It’s perfect.

Jason purrs, pulling his head away just briefly to check on their pup as she squirms and rolls over. Then he tugs the blanket over her shoulder and glances back up at Tim. “How do you feel about a little Mommy-Daddy time in your room?”

Tim’s smirk is wicked, leaning forward to nibble Jason’s neck in response. “I think you’d better get yourself into my bed before I’m tempted to carry you off there myself.”

“I suppose you might.” Jason drawls, stretching with a languid arch of his back, before darting around their sleeping pup to escape the bed. “If you can catch me.”

Despite his large size, Jason is quiet as he darts out of the room. His shoulder brushes against the doorframe, leaving behind the sweet scent of cherry pie.

Just as silent, Tim darts out after him and pauses only to set up the baby monitor. Then he’s on the hunt, scenting the air for clues as to Jason’s path through the house.

Predictably, the scent moves downstairs and Tim dodges the baby items left to trip him up. Every doorway he passes through is thoroughly marked by his tease of a mate. He finally catches up to him halfway into the storage room.

Jason pauses to arch his neck temptingly before darting to the control panel.

With the thrill of a mating chase coursing through his veins, Tim draws on his vigilante prowess to make the tackle without hurting his mate or pups. His hands push down on Jason’s shoulders firmly as he straddles his broad chest, careful to keep any actual weight off his stomach.

Jason watches with lust blown pupils as Tim lowers his mouth to suck a dark mark onto Jason’s neck. That one made, he shifts just slightly to bite another mark on the other side of his neck. In return, Jason arches his neck further to give access to his scent glands.

With a throaty purr, Tim indulges in smell of mate and home. His nose rubs against the gland gently to stimulate it before he begins lapping at the faint oily sheen produced.

Jason gasps and squirms, but Tim presses his chest firmly to the ground with a possessive growl. “Mine. Stay.”

“Mmm. So cave man Tim is, ah, back then?” Jason gasps once Tim’s released him from a deep kiss.

One of Tim’s hands trails across Jason’s chest, tweaking a dusky nipple before slipping to his waistband to find lace waiting for him. The other winds it’s fingers into Jason’s delightful curls. Tim lowers his lips to ghost the shell of Jason’s ear so he can whisper, “You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.

Jason’s resulting gasp and buck of his hips is heaven. The brief chase, the catch, has his alpha preening. He smirks at the omega, catching him in another desperate kiss, before moving downward to prove to Jason just how treasured he and their pups are. 

*****

Eventually, secrets must be shared.

With the ultrasound revealing triplets, and the potential for another one or two hiding behind the others, Tim is forced to tell first his family and then the company why he’ll be reducing his hours.

A corporation man stays behind to shake Tim’s hand. He leans in and claps Tim’s shoulder. “Congratulations. Nothing better than an omega with a full belly.”

Tim winces at the crass wording, but forces a smile. “Thank you. We’re both excited.”

“I’ve got two omegas myself, ” the man leans in conspiratorially, “so a word of advice. Once he’s got this litter on his teats, fill him up back up quick and he won’t even notice if his first is gone. The center is good at relocating pups fast so you if you knot him first, you can get the bastard pup out of the house before he gathers his wits to fight you.”

Then the man gives Tim another friendly clap on the back and is out the door before Tim can recover from the shock to deliver his scathing reply.

He’s out the door before Bruce can even turn to him. He has to get home.

Jason looks up when he enters the kitchen and gives a smile of acknowledgment, but he subtly shifts in his seat to put more of himself between Tim and Ellie.

The ache in Tim’s chest splinters into glass shards that tear at his lungs. For a moment he can’t breathe. He drops his suit coat on the ground, crossing the kitchen to drop to his knees in front of Jason. Desperately, he takes Jason’s hands and holds them tight.

“Tim?” His omega’s happy scent quickly shrivels into fear. “Tim, what’s wrong?”

“You know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt Ellie, right?” Tim begs, his fingers tightening desperately.

Jason rears back in alarm at the question, turning to pluck Ellie from her high chair as she starts to wail at the change in her parents’ scents. Jason cradles her close to his chest, backing away slightly to the corner. “What are you talking about? Where’s Bruce?”

“Bruce isn’t here. I need to—“ Tim tries to step forward, but freezes in place when Jason growls at him.

Jason hasn’t growled at him since the beginning of their marriage.

“Stay back.” His mate’s fear is suffocating and it tears him to shreds that it’s because of him. That Jason thinks that he’s dangerous to their pup. “Go to your room, Tim.”

“Jason, I—“

“Now Tim.”  The quaver in his mate’s voice is what breaks him.

Admitting defeat, Tim drops his head and slowly backs away. “Alright. I’m going.”

He collapses on the bed, trying to create plans to prove to Jason he would never hurt their firstborn. Tries to find something that would prove he sees Ellie as his firstborn.  When the door creaks open he jolts, hoping it’s Jason. Hoping that he can make promises to protect their pup and that his mate will believe him.

“You ran out after the meeting.” Bruce stares down at him with a frown. “Jason said you were hit with fear toxin.”

“He what?” Tim is too startled to put together a good response. Bruce showing up is a shock all on its own, but the idea of fear toxin is so foreign that he can’t come up with a good response.

The older alpha wraps his arm around Tim and tugs him close, no doubt seeing the tears Tim tried to hide. “Jason thinks you’re fear gassed, but we both know you’re not. So, want to tell me what’s wrong?”

“I adore Eleanor with everything I am, I love her. Bruce, I’d kill for her, but it seems like everyone else cares that I’m not her bio dad.” Tim growls and snaps his teeth in frustration. “They ask me when we’re going to rehome her, or if I ever get tired of seeing my mate waste my resources on another alpha’s pup and I just... today one of the businessmen congratulated me on the litter and then recommended I get rid of Ellie and I... I came home and Jason moved between me and her and I—”

Tim has to hide his face in his hands to keep from embarrassing himself further as his voice cracks. “I screwed everything up and scared both him and Ellie.”

Bruce’s warm hand rubs his back gently. “You’ve done nothing that can’t be fixed. You’re clever, brave, and a good husband. Jason will understand once you’ve explained. Just maybe explain to him with words instead of frantic babbling.”

“Encouraging communication? What have you done with Bruce Wayne?” Tim manages a weak smile.

Bruce just cuffs him across the back of the head lightly before crossing the room. Tim can see Jason lingering in the doorframe, Ellie snuggled against his chest. Bruce reaches for the pup and Jason hesistates. Instead of insisting, Bruce just keeps his arms held out and offers mildly, “I think I’ll be alright to hold her for a few minutes on my own. I do have children, you know.”

“Don’t give me that, old man.” Jason huffs and narrows his eyes admonition. “You adopted four teenagers and took in your bio kid when he was a tween.”

 

“I’ve held babies before, Jaylad.” Bruce insists mildly. It’s not his Brucie persona, but it’s softer than Batman. Tim’s pretty sure this is the real Bruce—the quiet intelligent child he abandoned to become Gotham’s protector. Ever since Ellie was born it seems that Bruce has been making more of an effort to be, well, Bruce. “No harm will come to your pup, Jason. I promise.

Jason nuzzles at Ellie’s cheek a moment longer before passing the unusually solemn baby over to her grandfather. Then, hesitantly, he enters the room and kneels in front of Tim. His fingers tremble as he reaches out to stroke them over Tim’s cheek. “Hey... are you okay?”

Tim waits until Bruce’s footsteps down the stairs have faded away before he begins explaining what happened. Once he’s finished that, he rushes on to lay out his feelings of inadequacy before Jason can interrupt and make him lose his courage. “So I... I worried that your omega friends had warned you that I might take her and I—“

He breaks off when Jason stands abruptly to cross over into his room. He comes back moments later with a pale yellow baby blanket that he shoves in Tim’s face. They brought home Ellie in it.

“You gave me this.” Jason’s voice cracks. “It was one of the first things you gave me and when I asked you why? You said it’s because you were courting both of us. Both, Tim. You were the onlyalpha  who’d even considered Ellie. I chose this, I chose you, because the first promise you made me was that I could keep her.”

“I’m... I’m sorry.” Tim reaches out and pulls his mate in close. The distress coming from Jason has him scenting and sucking a love mark on the omega’s neck.

Jason clutches Tim, sniffing back tears as he burrows against the smaller alpha. Then he abruptly stands and drags Tim downstairs to where Bruce is coloring with their daughter.

Ellie gives a distressed whine when she sees her parents. Jason cradles her to his chest for a moment before passing her to Tim. Immediately Ellie clumsily butts her head against Tim’s chest in instinctual scenting. He shifts her up a little higher and she bumps her nose against his neck a few times before she begins gumming it.

“What does she smell like?” Jason demands, fire in his tone despite how watery the question is.

“Jason—“

“I’ll tell you what she doesn’t smell like.” Jason’s still clutching the yellow blanket to his chest. “She doesn’t smell like bay leaves, or tobacco, or whiskey.”

Tim’s chest constricts a little tighter and he reaches out to pull Jason close. “Babe.”

“She smells like you, Tim. You’re her alpha, not Roman. I don’t care who fathered her, youwanted her. If we stayed—“ Jason hiccups and his hand, clinging to Tim’s shirt, spasms. “She wouldn’t be here. Roman didn’t want kids. So...” a deep breath, “so give me a little credit. I picked you to be the father of my pups. All of them.”

“I’m sorry, Jason.” Tim nuzzles his tiny family and nods at Bruce slipping out the door.  Then he ushers them upstairs to Jason’s room. He passes the baby over to her mother so he can build his omega a nest.

Jason watches him work before nudging him with Ellie’s baby blanket. Tim takes it and tucks it into the nest while Jason leans against him. Tim gently maneuvers the pair into the nest and tucks them into it. Jason wriggles a little, spreading his scent around the blanket structure with a pleased omega coo.

Tim can’t hold back his tired smile watching them. He reaches down to run his fingers through Jason’s curls. The possessive surge of emotion that comes out as an alpha rumble is startling, but feels right.

He doesn’t fight Jason as his omega pulls him down into the nest and sets Ellie on his chest. He arches his neck so Jason and their pup can scent mark him as theirs before returning the gesture to mark them as his.

Once they’ve settled, Jason half draped across his chest with Ellie sleeping in the hollow between them, Tim noses Jason’s forehead. “Do you really forgive me for being such an idiot?”

“Mm. Maybe.” Jason yawns, stretching a little. He tips his face up to look at Tim with a drowsy pout. “But only because I can’t take your bathtub with me if I leave.”

Tim smiles into their kiss and truly means it when he whispers back, “Lucky me.”


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> roman’s a jerk. jason needs cuddles.

For a minute Tim can only gape at his mate. Jason stands in the doorway dressed in a teal v neck that tucks into white slacks made to show off Jay’s yummy thighs. Even more attractive is the sight of his slight baby bump and Ellie on his hip. Tim’s mouth goes dry and it takes him a minute to reboot his brain.

Thankfully that’s long enough to notice his mate frustrated expression and scent.

Tim steps forward and runs one hand up and down Jason’s arms with a soft alpha croon. “Everything okay, babe?”

“Ellie won’t get dressed an’ I still have to do my hair an’make up an’ find her shoes an’ find your shoes,” Jason says, words blurring together in the street accent that always thickens when he’s stressed. His eyes are watery with tears, the whites turning red at the edges. “I can’t find my white blazer neither, an’ what if it’s stained?”

“C’mere, baby.” Tim pulls Jason in close with an arm around his waist and cups the back of Jason’s neck with delicate firmness. “It’s gonna be alright. I’m already dressed, so why don’t you give Peanut to me and I’ll finish getting her ready and look for the shoes.”

“You worked all day only to come home to a mess.” Jason nuzzles against Tim’s hair with a heavy whine. “I should have had everything ready, but I let myself get distracted and—“

“Nope.” Tim says and couples it with a light nip to Jason’s collarbone. “None of that. Everything’s going to be alright. You go get ready and I’ll take care of everything else. Take your time and spoil yourself a little. If we’re late, we’re late. Nobody is ever on time to these things. I promise, no one will even notice.”

Jason sniffs and pulls back to fuss over Ellie’s blond curls dejectedly. “It’s alright. I can get it done. I know you’re tired.”

“Which one of us sat at a desk all day filling out paperwork and which of us chased little peanut around the house while trying to cook, clean, and grow three pups? Hmm?” Tim plucks Ellie from Jason and blows a raspberry on her cheek so she’ll stop fussing at her mama’s distressed scent. “Go take care of yourself, babe. Ellie and I can get ourselves ready.”

“Alright.” Jason takes half a step backwards, reluctant to leave his family.

Tim just smiles and leads the way to the bathroom. Lately Jason’s reached one of the more territorial phases of his pregnancy. He’s grown clingy and obsessive about making sure the members of his family are never too far out of reach if possible.

Given the little that Jason’s shared about his past, Tim thinks that’s perfectly reasonable.

So while Jason uses a comb and hair gel to tackle his curls, Tim focuses his attention on coaxing Ellie into the gold and white dress Jason picked out for her. It’s... only moderately successful. He has one arm through a sleeve anyway.  It shouldn’t be that hard for an elite trained vigilante to wrestle a toddler into a dress and yet here they are. 

Ellie is well on her way into wriggling out of the ensemble.

By the time Tim gets their pup fully dressed, Jason is painstakingly applying eyeliner to highlight his pretty blue eyes. He’s already applied a delicate green-blue shadow to his eyes that fades into silver highlight. It’s somehow both striking and subtle.

Bored with her papa staring at her mother, Ellie squirms out of Tim’s hold and starts to crawl out of the bathroom.

“Tim.” Jason almost shrieks, dropping the liner to lunge for the baby. “She’s going to rip her dress!”

“I’ll get her, babe.” Tim tries to reassure as he chases the baby across the tile floor. He’s starting to curse whichever ancestor felt like they needed such a large and opulent bathroom.

Thankfully, she pauses at the doorway and pulls herself up to a standing position. One tiny hand grasps the wood frame for balance as she bounces up and down with a happy giggle.

Tim can’t help but grin back as he crouches down in front of her and holds out one hand to catch her if she falls. “You silly little peanut. You just can’t help terrorizing your mama, can you?”

“Mmmm.” She agrees with another happy bounce before falling onto her butt and clapping her hands.

“Gonna kill her mama.” Jason huffs looking utterly charmed.

Tim scoops up the baby and balances her on his shoulder. “Well we can’t have that. You finish getting ready while Peanut and I go look for everyone’s shoes.”

“Careful!” Jason flinches forward when Ellie wiggles. “Watch it, Drake. I swear if you drop her—“

“My lightning fast vigilante reflexes will catch her.” Tim flashes him his Tim Drake the dashing billionaire grin.

Jason’s glare only intensifies. “You will not be dropping her. You drop her and I'll drop kick you before moving in with your brother.”

“Dick?” Tim freezes in the doorway. “I thought you didn’t like him.”

Jason shrugs a shoulder and waves his hand vaguely. “Well, he hasn’t dropped my baby.”

“Neither have I.” Tim says and sticks out his lower lip in a pout.

Jason growls playfully and is halfway to flipping him off before he catches himself. “I’m still living with you aren’t I?”

He can’t help it. Tim beams at Jason and shifts Ellie to a position cradled against his chest. “Yeah you are.”

“Get outta here with that sappy shi— sugar.” Jason stumbles over his words, a pretty blush creeping across his freckled face.

Tim wants to pin him against a wall and ravish him, but they do have their baby to think about... and Bruce will kill him if they miss the event. Since he has Jason and Ellie, he’ll be representing the family so Bruce can go on patrol. Instead he contents himself with a roguish wink and a blown kiss that Ellie copies. “Only sappy for you, babe.”

“Out!” The blush has deepened to tomato red.

He and Ellie search the house from top to bottom, holding to her hands so she can practice walking for a bit. Once she tires of that, Tim goes back to cuddling her to his chest. Eventually they find all three sets of shoes and Jason’s white blazer.

At least... he’s pretty sure it’s the right blazer. He doesn’t think Jason has more than one white jacket. 

Jason emerges from the bathroom a short while later with subtle contouring and a soft pale pink lip. It’s not the dramatic makeup most male omegas wear, but Tim doesn’t think that would look as right on Jason. It’s not that he wouldn’t look amazing with it, but Tim knows that his husband would be too self-conscious to enjoy it.

”Mmm” Ellie squeals and hurls her body towards her mother, reaching out with grabby hands.  

Jason catches her quickly and nuzzles her face. After a few minutes he holds her up and tips his neck to let her scent him back.

She’s very serious about scenting, her face screwed up in a stern expression as she butts and nuzzles and licks Jason’s neck. When she’s deemed him properly scented, Ellie wiggles back a little and reaches up to tug at his curls. She’s obsessed with his white streak in particular, grabbing a fistful of it to try and gum it.

“Tim, where’s her teether?” Jason says, trying to gently tug his hair free without upsetting the baby.

“Ahhh...” Tim twists to look and spots the diaper bag nearby. After rummaging through it, he finds one. It’s not her favorite, but perhaps she can be tempted. 

He wiggles it at her and she releases Jason’s hair with one hand so she can take it. Her other hand stays tangled loosely in Jason’s hair, but it seems to be more of a comfort thing to keep close to Jason. Or at least, that’s what Jason says when Tim tries to untangle that hand too.

“Is her seat out in the car?” Jason takes the diaper bag and hooks it over one shoulder easily while Tim fetches the keys.

At Tim’s nod, Jason goes ahead out to get Ellie into the car while Tim locks up. Twenty minutes later, they’re arriving at the event. Reporters and paparazzi are waiting. Other couples are already idling on the red carpet, pausing to talk to the news coverage along the aisle.

Jason’s sigh is shaky, breathing in a deep breath of Ellie’s baby scent, before he gives Tim a nod. Tim climbs out of the car, drops the keys off to a valet, and then crosses around the car to let Jason out. Immediately Jason slips his hand into the crook of Tim’s elbow and poses shyly for pictures.

Ellie, unlike her mother, is delighted by the flashing lights and tries to grab at more than a few cameras.

One of the reporters approaches them quickly, eager to be the first to speak with them. “Mr. Wayne! Is it true that you’re expecting?”

Jason’s hand slips from Tim’s elbow to rest protectively over his stomach, shifting his weight. He’d agreed to sharing the pregnancy, had even been eager to, but like most omegas he was anxious with what people would do with the knowledge. The pups in Jason’s belly are literally being grown from his body, a fact Tim still can’t believe the second time around, and Jason’s complained many times about the fact that his stomach feels so vulnerable.

With a quiet soothing croon, Tim slips an arm around Jason’s waist protectively. Then he turns back to the reporter with his wide smile. “We sure are. It’s hard to believe that we’re going to be parents again so soon after our Ellie girl.”

Jason flinches at his public persona voice. Too many times to count, he’s said it sounds like a customer service voice. Tim rubs a knuckle along the inside of Jason’s arm in apology and makes a note to himself to tone it down tonight.

”And how is Gotham’s princess doing?” The female alpha says, turning to smile at Ellie. It feels like a tiger eyeing up prey.

Everything in Tim wants to pull his family away from the gossiping predator, but he knows he has to throw out a few bones to distract her before they can get away. So he makes his smile wider. “She’s doing great. Finally teething, so she’s been a little grumpier than usual.”

Jason snorts quietly beside him, leaning into his touch. He lets Tim take Ellie without protest though.

“She’s getting her bottom teeth, aren’t you baby?” Tim tickles her gently so she’ll laugh and let the reporter see the two tiny teeth beginning to poke through her gums.

Jason preens beside him, always eager to show off their baby. Unfortunately that draws the woman’s attention to Jason. Her eyes rake Jason up and down. It doesn’t matter that his mate is probably one of the most covered up omegas present, he’s still an omega and that must mean that he’s dressed for an alpha’s consumption.

Jason jabs a finger into his side before his low growl can become audible.

The reporter doesn’t notice. She coos over Jason’s outfit, gesturing for him to spin and pose for their photographer. “And who are you wearing tonight, Mrs. Wayne?“

Jason complies, though awkwardly. He’s always been uncomfortable with his new position among the Gotham celebrities, especially now that he’s got something a cult following online because of his unusual build. “Theresa Montoya designed it. She runs a small shop down on Park Row that I absolutely adore. She designed Eleanor’s dress and Timothy’s suit as well.”

The redirection is sucessful and the alpha and her photographer are easily charmed by their darling in a pretty dress. Unlike her mother, Ellie takes to the spotlight like a duck to water—she revels in it.

Jason is content to watch with an indulgent expression, absently rubbing his belly.

Once they’ve appeased that reporter, Tim sets Ellie down and holds her hands to help her walk over to the next reporter lying in wait for them. It takes them nearly an hour to get into the party itself, milling in the entryway while they wait for their turn to greet the hosts.

By this point Ellie has grown fussy, gnawing at her teether with whined complaints. Tim’s bouncing her on his hip because everytime Jason takes her, she immediately starts pulling at his neckline in search of milk. The idea of her mother’s modesty in public is both foreign and distasteful.

She throws her teether to the floor when Tim refuses to hand her back to Jason. Her chubby little fists reach out in grabby motions while she whines more insistently. When her whines fail, she throws her head back against Tim’s chest with an unhappy puppy growl. “Mmmmm!”

“Shh. Just a few more minutes, Peanut.” Tim tries to sooth, offering her his finger for her to suck on.

She accepts the substitute, but only grudgingly.

“Tim! I’m so glad you could make it.” Their host, Gerald Dawson, says and claps Tim on the back.  His smile only widens as he presses a kiss to the back of Jason’s hand. “And the lovely, Mrs. Drake-Wayne. Thank you for gracing us with your presence.”

Jason makes a startled noise before managing, “Thank you for having us.”

“It truly is our pleasure.” Their host smiles a little wider before turning to Ellie. He arches his neck just a little for the baby, showing her that despite his unfamiliar alpha scent he means her no harm. It also lets Jason relax a little, still unsure and somewhere agressive around other alphas.

“Is this the famous Eleanor?”

Ellie giggles, face tucked shyly into Tim’s chest, as the graying alpha makes faces.  She’s still careful to keep her mother in her line of sight.

Jason chuckles and wiggles his fingers at her as well. “Fussy Eleanor is more like it.”

At that moment, their host’s mate, Liu Wei, approaches and loosely links his arm through Jason’s in the casual way most omegas do with each other. He waves at Ellie as well, before patting Jason’s shoulder. “Bless your soul for coming tonight. If I was pregnant and Gerald asked me to leave my den, well... it would have been the last pup he would ever sire, if you catch my meaning.”

“Mmm.” Jason nods in complete agreement, as though castration is a very real threat that Tim needs to keep watch for in the coming months. Perhaps it is. “I’m not quite to that point, but if Tim had tried to insist on babysitting, I think he might have joined us with a few nonessentials missing. I hope you don’t mind that Ellie’s joined us tonight.”

“Oh, darling. Never.” The omega leans into Jason with a friendly churring noise.

Gerald watches with an indulgent expression, but it’s indulgence grown from affection rather than a sense of superiority. He’s one of the few alphas that Tim knows who sees his mate as an adult partner rather than an overgrown toddler. In fact, out of the entire board, he’d given the strongest approval for opening college to omegas.

Jason dips his head to bump noses with Liu Wei and responds with a churr of his own. It’s a strange noise that Tim’s only ever heard him make to other omegas. If he’s being honest, he’s not quite sure what it even means. When Jason straightens, he looks sheepish. “Ellie is hungry actually, if you have somewhere I could feed her?”

“Oh of course!” Liu Wei beams and turns to coo at Ellie. “We have a room set aside just in case. We don’t want any of our guests leaving with an empty belly. Do we, Gerald?”

“Of course not, dear.” Gerald says.

Tim watches as Liu Wei guides Jason with Ellie across the room. They seem deep in an intent conversation. Knowing Jason that means they could be talking about anything from books, to clothes, to omegas rights, to what needs done to help the homeless population of Gotham. The conversation doesn’t seem too unpleasant though, so he suspects it’s one of the former two.

“Mm. Look at them.” Gerald’s expression is sappy. “Liu Weiwill always be the most beautiful, but your mate can be a close second. Have you talked to him about school yet, or are you waiting until next year because of the litter?”

“We’ve talked. He still wants to go, so we’re going to make it work. Since I’ve got a flexible schedule and can do most of my work from home, that’s probably what will happen.” It’s difficult, but Tim does manage to tear his gaze away from his family. “Have you talked to Liu Wei yet?”

“He doesn’t want to.” Gerald pauses to greet a passing couple and then turns back to Tim. “Claims he’s too old and I would never force him into it. He cried though, when I told him it was an option.”

Tim hums in response, a small smile playing across his lips. “Jason spent the night filling out paperwork and chattering about books. It was adorable.”

“Adorable? Well someone’s got it bad.” An arm snakes around Tim’s neck.

His first instinct is to flip the offender over his shoulder, but he recognizes the voice. Pulling an annoyed expression, he turns to glance at Dick. “What are you doing here? I thought you went back to Blud.”

“I was on my way when Bruce called.” Dick’s smile is strained and he’s searching the crowd frantically. “Where’s Jason? Does he have Ellie?”

“If you’ll forgive us.” Tim smiles reassuringly at their worried host.

Gerald gives a slight wave before taking a half step backwards. “Of course. It’s always good to see you, Timothy.“

Dick doesn’t even wait for the alpha to get out of earshot. He grabs Tim’s arm tightly. “We need to get you guys out of here. Where’re they?”

“Dick—“

“Roman is here.” Dick hisses frantically, shaking Tim. “Bruce got the dna results back finally. Black Mask _was_ Jason first alpha, and he’s out on bail right now. Selena said that he’s here.”

Tim’s moving before Dick can finishes his first sentence. Later he can mad at himself for not realizing Roman was Roman. Right now he needs to get his family to safety.

Before they can find Jason, they hear a low snarl.

The entire room freezes. Over a hundred well dressed Gotham elites turn as one to the omega disrupting the pleasantries. Sick, sour scent floods the room and Jason repeats his growl. A few omegas gasp and one seems to faint.

Tim can’t see his mate or baby, but he’s running across the room regardless. Dick is on his heels.

Everyone moves out his way. An alpha Tim doesn’t know has put himself between Roman and Jason, trying to sooth Tim’s mate—acting like Jason is overreacting.

Roman, the sick bastard, is doing his best to appear friendly. Tim can hear him speak, low and crooning. “You look so settled, Jay. A babe on your hip and another on the way... congratulations. Never thought you were so domestic.”

Jason clutches Ellie to his chest, one hand over her ears while Liu Wei and the strange alpha try to soothe him back into the quiet complacency expected of an omega. He snarls deeper in response and tries to snap at Roman.

Tim’s heart thuds in his throat. There are several alphas blocking his way, too busy trying to calm their frantic mates to move for him. He shoves two women out of the way, ignoring the alphas’ snarls.

Why is the room so large? He’s red robin. Why isn’t he faster?

Roman’s slap seems to ring out through the whole room.

Two drops of blood hit the white marble.

Jason’s flinch and quiet hiss of pain makes Eleanor wail.

Tim reaches them and launches himself at Roman. He doesn’t pause, or look back. They’re a tangled snarl, clawing biting at each other. Tim’s never been in a fight like this, not truly. As RR he’s come close, but he’s never fought in an actual dominance battle.

He’s never fought over an omega either.

Other alphas get involved quickly, pulling them apart. Familiar, calloused hands pull Tim away from the tangled mass. Tim turns on Dick, ready to fight him to protect his mate if need be.

That’s when he spots Jason.  

The omega is trembling head to toe and pressed into the corner.  The other omegas, all highborn Gotham wealthy, are trying to coax him down but it’s not working. Even those who are blatant about their distaste for the “gutter trash” Tim brought into their midst can be seen chasing off a few well meaning younger alphas before turning to offer their silk scarves and jeweled necklaces—as though those will calm Jason’s frantic high pitched whine.

It’s a soul rending noise that calls to the most primal part of him. The part that wants to build his mate a nest, hunt for him, cook for him, and shower him in treasures and gifts.

Tim doesn’t waste another minute. The other alphas can handle Roman. Dick is there to make sure that the monster can’t cause too much trouble.

Ellie’s own whines have turned quiet and she clings to Jason with an intensity that looks foreign on a pup so small. Tim knows that it’s instinct that makes her so silent, but it’s terrifying. Jason has her cradled close as he threatens anyone who approaches.

Tim’s never seen him so distressed. He quickly moves over to Jason’s side, pulling him in close.

For a minute, Jason struggles. Omega aren’t as sharp as an alpha’s, but that’s only because an omega’s bite is meant to crush bone. Tim flinches when Jason latches onto his shoulder. Only the fact that Jason is trying harder to get away than to fight saves Tim from a shattered collarbone.

Thankfully the bite puts Jason’s nose almost directly over a scent gland. Immediately he lets go and collapses against Tim with a hitched breath.

Ellie begins to wail now that her alpha is there to protect and comfort. Her tiny hand latches onto Tim’s suit jacket as she tries to burrow herself into Jason’s chest.

Around them, most of the guests are distressed as well. Several of the omegas cling to their mates, a few rubbing their swollen bellies protectively.

Tim lets his hand slip from Jason’s back to rub circles on his baby bump. “Shhh. It’s okay, babe. It’s okay. We’re going home.”

“I guess that answers the question of whether or not he remembers me.” Roman laughs, shaking off Dick’s grip easily.

In their public personas, their hands are tied. There’s only so much they can do without revealing more training in combat than they should technically have. Tim’s willing to risk it though if Roman gets any closer.

Thankfully, or not, the alpha stops a few feet away and bends like he’s trying to get a glimpse of Ellie. Instinctively, Tim moves to hide her. “She looks a little too... blond to be yours, Drake. You sure she’s yours? JayJay’s such a whore for a knot, never can be too sure.”

“You’re on thin ice, Sionis.” Gerald’s alpha boom has both Jason and Ellie flinching closer to Tim. Their host moves to put himself between Roman and Tim’s family.

Liu Wei stands with him, supporting his husband and not hiding behind his alpha’s protection. “That sort of language and behavior is not allowed in my den.”

Roman’s lip curls back, but he doesn’t even acknowledge the omega with a glance. Instead he responds only to Gerald. “You can hardly fault a man for wanting to catch up with his mate after being away so long.”

“Jason is mated to Tim.” Dick says. He presses himself against Tim’s side, a common beta response to the threat of a fight. While most betas avoid physical conflict, they will often use their body as a shield for their pack.

Roman’s smile turns nasty. “My mating was never voided.”

Jason’s not even breathing now, just gasping in half swallows of air to maintain his low growl.

Crushing Jason closer to his chest, while still avoiding squishing Ellie, Tim looks Roman straight in the eye, meeting his challenging gaze. “Your mating was never recognized. He’s mine, Sionis.”

Roman growls. “For now.”

“I’ll thank you to leave.” Gerald pushes back in, stepping forward in threat. “You’ve disturbed my guests, upset my mate, and terrorized my friend’s husband. You’re no longer welcome.”

Roman narrows his eyes at Gerald and adjusts his signet ring, one of the marks of the Black Mask. “Is that so?”

The blood drains from Gerald’s face, leaving his skin an ashen sepia, but he doesn’t waver.

”As you wish.” Agonizingly slow, Roman dips his head and then bows. When he straightens, his smile is a threat. “Drake, be looking for my lawyer to contact yours.”

Tim doesn’t bother to answer with more than a snarl.

As soon as Roman is gone, Tim wants to rush Jason out the door and home to their nest. He needs to thank Gerald first though. He knows what the alpha and his mate just risked to throw Black Mask out of their house. “Thank you.”

“An alpha who treats a brooding omega—any omega at all— like that isn’t welcome in my home.” Gerald clears his throat, wrapping an arm around his own trembling mate.

Liu Wei leans on Gerald for support, but offers a flood of comforting omega scent. “Are Jason and Ellie alright?”

“I need to get them home.” Tim tries to smile, but he’s lost his grip on proper social conventions and he just can’t manage to grab it again. “They’re... they’ll be fine.”

After a moment of hesitation, Liu Weisteps forward to brush Tim’s arm. It reminds him of Jack Drake’s subtle comfort when he was younger. “Please call us tomorrow to let us know everyone is recovered.”

“I will.” Tim says around the lump in his throat before rushing his mate out to Dick’s car. He would take his own, but the valet parked it. Thankfully Dick has the manor’s emergency car seat.

Jason refuses to sit in the front or to release Tim. After several minutes of trying to convince his mate that he should be the one to drive, Tim gives in. He takes the window seat and curls up around Jason, who had taken the middle.

Dick drives them back to their brownstone. The ride is mostly silent, except for the sound of Ellie’s whimpers and Jason’s half controlled sobs.

The very second the car pulls to a stop, Tim is ushering his family into the house and up to Jason’s room. The enclosed bed and nest should help soothe the instinctual need to hide. He doesn’t bother to speak to Dick, his brother will understand that Jay and Ellie are the most important right now.

While Jason nurses Ellie, the poor pup still hungry from earlier as well as traumatized by the events, Tim gathers up Jason’s favorite sleeping clothes. He changes into his own sleep shirt and grabs Ellie a nightgown and a fresh diaper. Jason changes and wipes his face down, while Tim bounces Ellie on his hip.

Then once Jason is ready, Tim gets his family settled into their nest and begins to insistently groom them. It’s only now that they’re alone that Jason finally allows himself to break down into sobs.

“Shhh. I won’t let him.” Tim promises. “Bruce has the best lawyers money can buy. If we need to, I’ll make sure he gets the best judges we can buy too. I won’t let them take you, either one. You’re safe.”

“But what if he wins?” Jason sobs. He keeps one hand fisted in Tim’s sleep shirt while the other moves between stroking over Ellie’s cheek and rubbing his baby belly. “He could win.”

“Then I’ll run away with you.” Tim promises. “Bruce owns a few private islands in Southeast Asia. We can live there.”

“What if we can’t get away?”

“We’ll make it.” Tim kisses Jason’s face, every inch of it, until his mate finally falls asleep. It’s not a restful sleep, twitching and whimpering every so often until Tim tightens his hold protectively again.  Stroking the back of a finger over Jason’s scarred and freckled cheekbone, Tim whispers another promise. “He won’t ever have you again. I’ll kill him first.”


End file.
